Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy on Monday announced that Praja Vedika — a convention hall in Amaravati built by the previous Telugu Desam Party (TDP) government on the embankment of the river Krishna in Guntur district — would be demolished on Wednesday, “as it is an illegal structure built in violation of all rules and regulations.”
He made the announcement on the first day of the collectors’ conference which began on Monday in the Praja Vedika itself. “I have decided to hold the collectors’ conference here to expose the misdeeds of the previous government and how it acted brazenly with impunity, violating all norms.”
He added, “ The conference will conclude on Tuesday and the demolition will begin on Wednesday,” he told the district collectors and other IAS officers.
A political row is raging over the issue, as former Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, had written to the new government asking it to allot him the convention hall to hold meetings with the public, as he is the Leader of the Opposition.
The TDP leaders condemned it as “a vindictive move” and said it showed “the attitude of the new Chief Minister and how he was bent on demolishing all that had been built by the previous government.”
Gives instructions
The CM instructed collectors to implement the YSR Congress manifesto in all sincerity and take the welfare programmes to the people. “We will appoint village volunteers — one for 50 families — in the villages from August 15 and their services should be used to see to it that the welfare programmes reach the intended beneficiaries. Village secretariats would also be set up,” he said.
He said the village volunteers would be paid ₹5,000 per month and, “if there are any corruption charges, the public can call up the Chief Minister’s office. A call centre would be set up for the purpose.”
He said, “In all projects, corruption had taken place on a large scale. The new government will set up a judicial commission to go into the tendering process and ensure transparency. Reverse tendering process would be resorted to in the case of many contracts to bring down costs.”
He told the collectors, “Every Monday, all of you must attend to the grievances of the public, not only the district collectors, but all officials.”
He said that every family in the State should be given a house site and 25 lakh house sites should be distributed by Ugadi - the Telugu New Year Day, 2020.