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Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister and TDP National President N Chandrababu Naidu held a meeting with ministers and zonal observers to discuss preparations for the upcoming local body elections.
TDP Working President Nara Lokesh and TDP Andhra Pradesh President Palla Srinivasa Rao also participated in the meeting. Party leaders congratulated the Chief Minister for inaugurating Veligonda Phase-1 and the Polavaram Left Main Canal after overcoming several obstacles. According to the Chief Minister's Office (CMO), CM Naidu saidthe party machinery must be fully prepared for the local body elections and should achieve a better strike rate than it did in the Assembly elections. He said the local body elections will provide an opportunity to assess where the party stands compared to the situation during the 2024 Assembly elections. CM Naidu noted that this is the first time the TDP is going into local body elections as part of an alliance and said under no circumstances should there be any gap or lack of coordination among alliance partners. The party must work in coordination with NDA partners, and appropriate decisions will be taken depending on local conditions, he said. He said the party should ensure a combination of senior and new leaders working together and approach the local body elections with a positive agenda. The development and welfare initiatives undertaken by the government, from village level to state level, must be explained to every household, CM Naidu said, adding there is positive perception among people about the work done by the alliance government and the party must effectively take ownership of that goodwill. He said if candidates are selected through a process of social re-engineering, people will understand and support the party. Youth and women will be given priority in candidate selection, which will be based on performance and acceptance among people and party workers. CM Naidu said the government will ensure 34 per cent reservation for Backward Classes (BCs) in local body elections. If necessary, representation may be increased beyond 34 per cent, but it will not be reduced by even one per cent. He said some people have approached courts over BC reservations, but the government is committed to implementing 34 per cent reservation in accordance with the Act formulated in 1995 and is continuing its legal battle. He said during Jai Ho BC public meetings, the injustice allegedly done to Backward Classes by the opposition should be explained. Despite financial difficulties, the government is implementing both welfare and development programmes and is working towards creating an all-time record in welfare implementation, Naidu said. He said the government has inaugurated Veligonda Phase-1, creating history, and inaugurated Polavaram Left Main Canal, paving the way for the Uttarandhra Sujala Sravanthi project and taking water towards Anakapalli. Water has been supplied to tail-end regions of Rayalaseema through Handri-Neeva canals, he said. Had the government continued after 2019, river-linking projects would have been completed by now and would help the state tackle disasters such as El Nio, he said, as per the CMO. CM Naidu said programmes should be organised by involving stakeholders, similar to inaugurations of Bhogapuram Airport, Veligonda and Polavaram Left Main Canal. He said the party must remain vigilant about alleged conspiracies and strategies of the opposition, expose them and counter fake propaganda. He alleged the opposition approached the court seeking to prevent elections from being held before completion of the SIR process, indicating it does not want elections to take place, and is allegedly making efforts to prevent funds from reaching the state. A Leadership Training Conclave will be held at the party office on September 7 and 8, he announced. Meanwhile, the Andhra Pradesh State Election Commission has set September 3 as the deadline for finalising polling stations on a ward-wise basis, with January 1, 2026, as the qualifying date. (ANI)
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