Dedicated railway zone for Vizag, development of IT corridor in Tirupati, AIIMS in one of the 13 districts, sustainable industrialization in pre-selected zones in various districts, support to pharma hubs in viable locations, agricultural university… these are just some of the promises from the many random promises that TDP and BJP made to the people of Seemandhra prior to the general elections.
Going by the tall promises of their leaders and with lots of hope on the experience and expertise of Chandra Babu Naidu in developing world-class infrastructure across the state of Andhra Pradesh, the people of Seemandhra voted the TDP government to power.
Of course, the TDP-BJP alliance was another vital reason for many people to vote for TDP as they hoped that Chandra Babu Naidu with support from Narendra Modi would turn Andhra Pradesh into another Gujarat.
But merely days after the swearing-in ceremony of Chandra Babu Naidu, reality has hit the people of Seemandhra pretty hard.
Going by the promises of Chandra Babu they expected systematic development of all the 13 districts across AP. They had dreamt of a state that would not only set an example for development and growth within the country, but would also become a role model for countries across the world. Slowly, reality is dawning on the people of Seemandhra as there is no longer any mention of a railway zone in Vizag. Neither are there any plans for promoting industrialization.
In fact, after raising hopes that the entire region would be developed on the lines of Dubai and Singapore, union minister Venkaiah Naidu has already hinted that people should not expect a capital city on par with Hyderabad. Similarly, Chandra Babu Naidu who in the past said that power and development should not be concentrated in one city is slowly inching towards simulating a similar growth pattern in Andhra Pradesh.
Though he hasn’t said it in so many words, Chandra Babu is preparing the ground to develop Vijayawada-Guntur area, which will be repeating the same mistake he made in the case of Hyderabad. One thing has become clear though. The newly elected government seems to have no clear cut agenda for the uttarandhra region nor do they seem to have any plans for the Rayalaseema region. Both Venkaiah Naidu and Chandra Babu are conveniently ignoring their native districts to focus on developing Vijaywada-Guntur.
With Babu no longer mentioning the agricultural university or IITs or AIIMS in his speeches, Seemandhra people who were looking forward to a spurt of development in the entire region both in terms of education and industrial growth are now worried about their future.
In stark contrast to his pre-election speeches which were pegged on growth and development, of late, Babu’s speeches are sprinkled with references to the huge deficit budget that the Andhra Pradesh government needs to deal with. He has also recently mentioned that he will issue white papers about the financial situation of Andhra Pradesh. Now, these facts are already known to people. Hence, all they want from Chandra Babu is action on all his pre-poll promises.
For people of Seemandhra who have been rattled by bifurcation, Chandra Babu was a ray of hope that could help them get on to the path of growth and prosperity. But now, he seems to be keen on developing the Krishna and Guntur districts by sidelining the remaining 11 districts. And the very people who voted him to power are now left facing an uncertain future with little hope.
Written By Ramesh Chandra
