Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy stated that Government had implemented welfare schemes and took up development activities with financial discipline despite adverse situations like Covid, inheriting strained and complex status from the previous TDP rule and he pooh-poohed Chandrababu Naidu’s tall promises ahead of elections as the Opposition leader carries the blemish of dumping manifesto into dustbin while YSRCP treats it as a holy book.
Replying to the discussion on the Motion of thanks to Governor’s address in the Assembly here on Tuesday, the Chief Minister also dismissed the charges that Government has made State debt-ridden and said that the State had rolled out DBT welfare schemes worth Rs 2,55,000 crore and non-DBT welfare schemes worth Rs. 1,07,000 crores. The previous government too had the same budget, but it could not deliver welfare as the difference speaks in the commitment of the Chief Ministers then and now.
He said that the debt of the residual Andhra Pradesh which stood at Rs 1,53,000 crore including all types of loans at the time of bifurcation had gone up to Rs 4,12,288 crore in 2019 when YSRCP came to power.
Now, the total debt stands at Rs 7,03,000 crore and it clearly indicates that the growth rate of debt during the TDP rule stood at 21.87 per cent, it stands at 12.13 per cent during the last 5 years, he said, adding that not even a single welfare scheme was implemented during the TDP rule though the budget was the same and the debt-growth rate was higher.
Braving the odds of reduction in devolution of Central funds and reduced tax revenues during the last five years due to several reasons including the Covid-19 pandemic that resulted in Rs 66,116 crore revenue loss, Government has excelled in fiscal discipline, debt management, planning and implementation of slew of welfare schemes transparently.
The Chief Minister recalled that the state was bifurcated in an unjust manner allocating 50 per cent of the revenues to Telangana that represented 42 per cent of the population and the remaining 50 per cent to residual Andhra Pradesh that has 58 per cent population putting the State to a yearly revenue loss of Rs 13,000 crore.
Coming down heavily against the TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu for making false election promises for political gains, he said that Government needs to spend around more than Rs. 1, 26,000crore annually for fulfilling them.
When we are striving hard to implement DBT and non-DBT welfare schemes worth around Rs. 70,000 crores annually, how can Chandrababu Naidu mobilize Rs. 1, 26,000crore on his false promises, he questioned.
Like a copycat, Naidu made mix of six election promises at will and pleasure picking them up from the election manifestoes of other parties that won in other states with a view to cheat the people again, the Chief Minister said.
Debunking the theory of wealth creation advocated by the TDP friendly media for implementing the impracticable promises, the Chief Minister asked why Naidu failed in creating wealth during his earlier tenures.
While Chandrababu Naidu stands for lies, this Government stands for credibility, he said, adding that the TDP was shown the door in 2019 with just 23 seats as people understood his nature of telling lies and cheating the people.
Asserting that Naidu only pursued the policy of plunder, stash and devour during his rule, the Chief Minister appealed to the people to think over why Naidu failed to implement even a single welfare scheme during his rule while the budget was the same.
Like the old hungry tiger, Naidu has been throwing the bait to the people with false promises to cheat them once again, he said, adding that people still remember how Naidu defaulted on the loan waiver Rs. 87,612 crore.
“I sat in the Opposition for five years for not making the false promise of farm loan waiver prior to 2014 elections but I have no regrets for that. I make only promises that can be fulfilled for the benefit of the people,” he said, asserting that YSRCP won a permanent place in the hearts of the people with its credibility.
Despite the heavy financial odds, we have implemented more than 99 per cent of our election promises, and our credibility will ensure that YSRCP will clean sweep the elections and introduce the full-fledged budget in the Assembly after three months, the Chief Minister asserted.
