Naidu sounds the bugle for polls

By SNV Sudhir

Visakhapatnam, April 27, 2013: TD chief Chandrababu Naidu on Saturday sounded the poll bugle, interestingly a year before the 2014 polls. He chose his historical padayatra concluding ceremony held at the AU Engineering college grounds as a platform to roll out promises that he would fulfill if voted back to power in 2014.

Mr Naidu walked through 84 constituencies, 162 mandals, 28 municiplaities and approximately 1,523 villages in 16 districts during his 2,817-km long padayatra, which he launched on October 2, 2012 from Hindupur in Anantapuram district.

“I never saw such a response in my lifetime which I have received at this moment. I owe a lot to you all for the affection you have showered on me. It was your affection that made me walk from Anantapur to Vizag all these days,” Naidu said.

Stating that every section of the public suffering from the problems that are plaguing the state, he vowed to put it back on track after coming to power. Naidu said his first signature would be on thefile pertaining to total farm loan waivers and the next one would be on abolition of belt shops.

Naidu chanted the ryot mantra at the public meeting probably in an attempt to shed his image as a hitech leader. “I was deeply pained and moved by the difficulties being faced by the common public especially farmers. Both mother and child Congress had ridiculed my promise of waiving farm loans. But I will now show them how it can be done. I will make agriculture attractive and will provide Minimum Support Price (MSP) to farmers. My aim is to see smiles again on famers' faces.“

Naidu promised a better health insurance scheme than Arogya Sri, special schemes for weavers, SCs, STs and BCs. He also reiterated his party’s stance on SC catergorisation.

“We are committed to the welfare of Madigas and stand for SC categorisation. We have done it earlier and Madigas have benefited from it. I know Malas are not against it and so is my party,” he added.