Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu has lamented that the previous regime created destruction in the name of `one chance’ and made a mockery of democracy by making victims as accused.
Participating in the Independence Day celebrations on Thursday, he hoisted the tricolor flag at the Indira Gandhi Municipal Stadium, Vijayawada and received a salute from the armed police forces.
Addressing the people of the state, he recalled how dreams of all Telugu people for a state of their own starting from Visalandhra movement in 1946 have been facing many hardships. Even after bifurcation in 2014, he lamented that the state failed to get its due share in resources and was facing severe challenges for development.
Alleging that the previous YCP regime has pushed the state into several decades back by encroachment of government lands and looting properties. Those questioned were attacked with false cases and illegal arrests, he added. Instead of creating wealth, he accused them of having looted lakhs of crores of public money and led the state into a deep debt trap.
CM Chandrababu said that Rs.10 lakh crores of debt, inefficient and corrupt governance has created a serious crisis and diverted SC, ST, BC and minority funds.
Chandrababu, who has designed welfare and development programs and moved forward rapidly, recalled that we stood at a growth rate of 13.5 percent with reforms that no one expected in the country. “We have improved the living standards of people with more than 120 welfare schemes and stood first in Ease of Doing Business”, he said.
CM Chandrababu said that we have attracted the attention of the country by making agreements for investments of Rs. 16 lakh crores. He said that the state without a capital did not sit in pain and turned crisis into opportunities.
He said that the foundation stone of the capital, which is the pride of the country, has been laid, and that the capital has been laid in the heart of the state, Amaravati. He made it clear that 34,000 acres of land has been acquired with the cooperation of the people and we always believe that the state will be good only if the farmer is good.
Chandrababu said that his government has been giving highest priority to irrigation and Rs 68,000 crore have been spent on the irrigation in five years. Chandrababu said that the Polavaram project has been given the highest priority and that the project has been run like a yajna.
Recalling that during the earlier TDP regime 73 percent of the work had been completed, he said that if the TDP government continued it would have been completed by now.