RAJAMAHENDRAVARAM: Known for its commercial centres in Coastal Andhra Pradesh, Tadepalligudem Assembly constituency, one of the seven Assembly segments in West Godavari district, has been grappling with significant developmental challenges. While on one side YSRC has fielded Endowment Minister and sitting MLA Kottu Satyanarayana to retain the seat, on the other hand, as part of the tripartite alliance, Jana Sena nominated former Tadepalligudem municipality chairman Bolisetty Srinivas to contest the constituency.
With little more than 30 per cent, the Kapu community has been detrimental in dominating the constituency politically, socially and economically. It is interesting to note that the segment has been branded as an endowment minister’s constituency, as for the past 40 years, three MLAs who were elected to the Assembly from Tadepalligudem have served as endowment ministers in the State cabinet.
With hundreds of rice mills and godowns for fruits, onions and chilli exports located in the town, Tadepalligudem is considered to be one of the most prosperous and wealthy towns in the western delta. There are 2,13,229 voters in the constituency, including 1,04,059 male and 1,09,160 female voters.
Tadepalligudem is a bastion of TDP since the inception of the party in 1982. While Telugu Desam won the seat in the 1983, 1985, 1989, 1994 and 1999 elections, Congress emerged victorious in the 1987 by-elections and 2004 general elections, Praja Rajyam in 2009, BJP in 2014, and YSRC in 2019 elections.
Though people of the region are venting out their dissent over the incomplete poll promises, the region has not seen any concrete efforts from the governance end. The electorate laments that there is no second summer storage tank in the region to tackle the water shortage.
Though every year, the rural areas of Tadepalligudem suffers severely due to the Yerra Kaluva floods, leaders continue to promise to address the issue by constructing retaining walls. However, the promises are only confined to papers, the people rued. In addition to this, with no halt for long distance trains at Tadepalligudem railway station, the commuters are forced to board the train either at Rajamahendravaram or Vijayawada. With all these issues, the political analysts are opining winning the seat is not a cake walk for the candidates.