Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy stressed the need to integrate certified job-oriented online vertical courses like risk analysis, risk management, banking and real estate administration with mainstream curriculum for improving the skills of degree students and enabling them to choose self-employed professions.

During the review meeting on Higher Education held here on Thursday, the Chief Minister directed the officials to acquaint themselves with various courses being imparted to students in popular educational institutions abroad and implement the same curriculum in our educational institutions.

Such curriculum should be integrated with the syllabus by June next, he suggested, adding that officials should also have a tie-up with national institutions like National Stock Exchange (NSE) to develop the students as self-employed professionals in various sectors.

He suggested that steps be taken to fill the vacant posts in the Department by clearing legal hurdles by June in view of the green signal given by the Government. Officials should become more active to meet the pace of reforms being introduced in the Department.

Every higher education institution should strive to achieve NAAC (National Assessment and Accreditation Council) accreditation in the next three years by improving standards in teaching and other to get eligibility step by step every year, outlined the Chief Minister, asserting categorically that recognition of institutions which fail in this respect should be cancelled.

As the Government is establishing skill development centers in all 175 constituencies, students should be trained to meet the scarcity of experts in the fields of solar panel making, repairing of solar motors and maintenance of solar parks and the same courses should be introduced by June next.

Besides strengthening the Academic Staff Colleges in Visakhapatnam and Tirupati to improve the standards of teaching staff, another such college should be established in central Andhra region, directed the Chief Minister, asking the officials to take a final decision based on the attendance of students and facilities available in the private B.Ed colleges which are cheating students.

Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy and his wife YS Bharati Reddy celebrated Sankranti at the camp office here on Saturday amidst rural ambience festive spirit.

The Chief Minister extended Sankranti greetings to all Telugu people across the world and wished them well on the occasion.

Reflecting the Sankranti opulence, the camp office premises was spruced up with flowered arches and traditional Muggulu.

The Chief Minister couple initiated the festivities by breaking customary coconut at Lord Ganesha temple. Vedic Pundits blessed them by reciting Vedic hymns and presenting them new clothes.

The couple, attired in traditional dress, walked through the premises wishing the guests individually and accepting their wishes in return. They lit the bon fire Bhogi Manta).

YSRCP leaders including government Chief Whip Chevireddy Bhaskara Reddy, Deputy Chief Minister (Endowments) Kottu Satyanarayana, Housing Minister Jogi Ramesh, TTD Chairman Y.V. Subba Reddy, MP Nandigam Suresh and Government Whip Samineni Udayabhanu were among the participants.

The Chief Minister and his wife performed Go-Puja (cow worship) at the Goshala by garlanding it. On the occasion, they offered Biksha to Hari dasu and the Sankranti Gangireddu.

They also inspected the replicas of Village Secretariat, Government School, Village Clinic and Rythu Bharosa Kendram specially erected in the premises.

They also witnessed dance drama of Srinivasa Kalyanam and listened to the popular numbers Gobbi Yello…Gobbi Yello rendered by folk singer Kanakavva and Komma Uyyala by RRR fame singers Prakruti Redy and Harinka Narayan.

AP Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy reviewed the arrangements for Global Investors Summit and G-20 Summit to be held in Visakhapatnam in March at his camp office in Tadepalli on Thursday.

Briefing the chief minister on the arrangements for the Global Investors Summit slated for March 3-4, the officials said, “Between 2014-2019, the state conducted three summits and signed MoUs for 18.87 lakh crores. But only Rs 1.8 lakh crore was materialized.

Further, the average annual investment during that period was Rs 11,994 crore. During the current government, the annual average investment between 2019-2022 is Rs 15,693 crore. From June 2019 till now, investments of Rs 1,81,821 crore have been received, and 1,40,903 people have received jobs.”

“Prepare a comprehensive program to explain the investment opportunities in the state. Andhra Pradesh should be a platform for the manufacturers in the world, including green energy.”

Officials said that roadshows will be organized in Taiwan, UAE, Germany, Japan, South Korea, and the USA regarding the Global Investors Summit.

The Chief Minister said, “Study the way MSMEs are running in those countries and focus on adopting the best management in our state.”

The Chief Minister reviewed the arrangements for the G-20 Conference scheduled for the last week of March in Visakhapatnam. Officials informed CM Jagan that 250 delegates from all over the world are expected to attend the conference from G20 countries.

Since the G20 conference on Infrastructure Working Group meeting will be held on March 28 and 29, the Chief Minister asked the officials to beautify the city of Visakhapatnam and undertake necessary roads and development projects.

“All the tourist attractions in Vizag and nearby areas should be in pleasant conditions. And the safety of the delegates is important so strict measures should be in place,” said the Chief Minister.

He also asked the officials to have programs on the state’s revolutionary schemes like Navaratnalu to impress the representatives on the opportunities available in AP for investors.

“From the ease of doing business to growth indicators where Andhra Pradesh is topping, everything should be showcased to the delegates,” said the Chief Minister.

Officials said that they are creating a mobile app for the convenience of the delegates attending the meeting with all the information regarding the summit, cultural excursions, and so on.

AP Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy released Rs.395 crore under the Jagananna Thodu towards interest free loans through banks to benefit 3.95 lakh petty traders and artisans at Rs. 10,000 each. He also released Rs 15.17 crore towards reimbursement of interest to benefit 13.28 lakh beneficiaries who have obtained and repaid the loans promptly in the last six months.

Releasing the amount virtually by click of a button at the Camp Office here on Wednesday, the Chief Minister said that the beneficiaries of the scheme, besides becoming part and parcel of the self-employed community, are also helping the society indirectly in a great way.

He said it is a matter of pride for the State that it has sanctioned 24, 06,000 loans out of the total number of 39,21,000 loans given in the entire country. Out of the total 15,31,347 beneficiaries, 8,74,745 traders and artisans are promptly repaying their loans and have become inseparable part of the scheme by recycling their loans with great discipline, he said, adding that it indicates a good change in the society.

Eligible people who have not availed the scheme for any reason can apply through village and ward secretariats and such people would be included in the scheme at the end of social audit every six months.

The Chief Minister said he had seen the hardships of several artisans and petty traders during his Praja Sankalpa Yatra and decided to end their woes by introducing the Jagananna Thodu scheme.

With today’s disbursal that benefits 28,000 new petty traders and artisans, the Government has so far reimbursed Rs. 63.65 crore as interest alone while the total loan amount sanctioned so far reaches Rs 2,406 crore benefiting 15,31, 347 people out of which 80 percent of them belong to SC, ST, BC and minority communities.

Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy instructed the Women and Child Welfare Department officials to take up the Rs. 1500 crore infrastructure development works in all Anganwadis in three phases implementing a clear cut action plan covering all Mandals.

During a review meeting on the functioning of Anganwadis on Tuesday, the Chief Minister directed the officials to constantly monitor the supply of milk and eggs to the children to ensure their quality. He told them to formulate SOPs using technology to ensure a fool proof and hassle-free distribution of food items.

There should be a constant vigil even on the functioning of supervisors and strict action should be taken against staff members indulging in wrong doings in the distribution of milk and eggs. Besides filling the existing 63 CDPO posts as soon as possible, the process of giving promotions should also be expedited, he suggested.

Besides ensuring that quality milk is served to all children, officials should launch a pilot project immediately to serve flavoured milk to children, he said, observing it can be launched in full-fledged manner after three months.

The Chief Minister asked the officials to formulate proposals on introducing teaching methods using smart TVs to give the best education to kids in Anganwadis. While village and ward clinics should constantly monitor the health of the children in Anganwadis, better medical treatment should be extended to all children using Aarogyasri wherever necessary.

He said Anganwadis, Medical and Health Department and Village Clinics should work in tandem to ensure nutritious food to all mothers and children suffering from anaemic problems. They should be given additional medicines, and this should be implemented from Feb 1. A permanent solution should be found to the problem using the family doctor concept and formulating SOPs.

A fool proof method should be developed to provide take home ration for all mothers, he said, adding that the government is giving as much importance to women and child welfare as it gives to education, agriculture, medical and health sectors.

He asked the officials to work favourably towards the children in all government schools and Anganwadis as majority of children belong to weaker sections. We can achieve best results by extending good education to children between 10 to 12 years, he said.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y. S Jagan Mohan Reddy on Wednesday asked nhis YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) cadres to keep aside all differences and strive to achieve the goal of winning all 175 Assembly seats in the next year’s elections.

Asserting that winning all 175 seats is not an impossible task, he urged the party cadres to work unitedly.

The Chief Minister interacted with party activists of Vijayawada East Assembly constituency and exhorted them to prepare for the polls by taking forward the good work done by the government during the past three and a half years.

During the meeting held at the camp office here, he emphasised the importance of the Gadapa Gadapaku Prabhuthvam programme to reach out to the people highlighting the welfare schemes being implemented by the YSRCP government and insisted on receiving feedback.

“To further strengthen the party at the grass root level, we are appointing secretariat-wise conveners and house chiefs for every 50 to 70 houses and they will be involved in party activities,” he said.

“A male and female cadre will be incharge to carry the party message, besides providing publicity material. No matter how small a problem anyone has, it should be solved and welfare should be reached to all the eligible. Persons who missed out to receive the benefits for various reasons will be covered twice in a year,” he said, adding that the revolutionary step was not taken by previous governments.

He claimed that around 88 per cent of the houses in the state are benefited by the government’s welfare schemes.

Referring to Vijayawada East constituency where 14 out of 21 wards were won by the party, he said that even where there is an opposition MLA, his party have been able to win more wards.

Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy directed the Housing Department officials to ensure that basic infrastructure like drinking water, drainage system and electricity is provided without fail in all layouts by the time the construction of houses is completed.

During the review meeting on the construction of Jagananna Colonies held on Monday, the Chief Minister took stock of the progress and directed the officials to speak to the beneficiaries and provide electricity connections to all houses when construction reaches the final stage.

He also instructed the officials to form alternative lay-outs where construction of houses was held up due to court cases and other disputes.

Earlier, officials informed the Chief Minister that the construction of houses has been expedited and the government has so far incurred an expenditure of Rs 6435crore on construction of houses in the current fiscal, excluding APTIDCO’s expenditure.

They explained that, as per the instructions given by him in the previous review meeting, inspection teams are periodically visiting the layouts and monitoring the progress and quality of construction by conducting four types of evaluation tests at all places. In December alone, officials visited four lay-outs and conducted quality control tests. They further said that arrangements are being made to establish testing labs in all layouts.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy on Sunday expressed shock over the stampede at Guntur which claimed lives of three women.

He instructed the officials to ensure quality medicare to those injured and stand by the families of deceased.

Three women were killed and 13 others injured in the stampede during distribution of Sankranti gifts by the main opposition Telugu Desam Party (TDP).

The stampede, which happened after TDP President and former Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu had left the venue after launching the programme, occured in one of the counters set up for distribution of kits. Some women tried to surge forward. As the barricade collapsed, women fell on each other.

A woman died on the spot while two others succumbed at Government General Hospital.

Home Minister V. Rajini, who visited the hospital, blamed Naidu for the deaths. She alleged that people were losing lives due to his publicity tricks.

This is the second such incident at a TDP programme in less than a week.

Eight persons were killed during Naidu’s road show in Kandukur town of Nellore district on December 28.

Jagan Mohan Reddy had slammed Naidu for the incident and remarked that his craze for publicity cost human lives.

The ruling YSR Congress Party alleged that Naidu is organising road shows and public meetings in narrow lanes to show that large number of people were attending his programmes.