Telugu Desam Party president and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has recently made a U-turn on the implementation of the Annadata Sukhibhava scheme, stating that his government would release funds to farmers only in proportion to the financial assistance provided by the Centre under the PM-Kisan scheme.
Earlier, Naidu had promised ₹20,000 per farmer per year, including ₹6,000 from the PM-Kisan scheme. However, he is now planning to provide only ₹12,000 annually (including the Centre's ₹6,000), and that too in three instalments.
It now appears that Naidu is planning to adopt a similar approach for the Thalliki Vandanam scheme, which provides financial assistance to mothers for sending their children to school.
The Chief Minister had announced that under Thalliki Vandanam, mothers would receive ₹15,000 per year for each school-going child, regardless of the number of children.
Funds for the scheme have already been allocated in the state budget, and the implementation guidelines are expected to be discussed in the cabinet meeting on Tuesday.
With schools reopening after the summer vacation on June 12, the government aims to deposit the funds directly into mothers' bank accounts at the beginning of the academic year.
According to recent reports, Naidu is currently deliberating on whether the ₹15,000 per child should be disbursed in a single instalment or in two equal instalments of ₹7,500 each.
For the 2024–25 academic year, approximately 8.1 million students are enrolled in Andhra Pradesh, and the Education Department has identified around 6.916 million students as eligible for the Thalliki Vandanam scheme.
To reduce the financial burden, the government has introduced eligibility conditions.
Students must maintain at least 75% attendance to qualify. Additionally, families who pay income tax, do not possess white ration cards, consume more than 300 units of electricity, own cars, or reside in homes larger than 1,000 sq. ft. in urban areas will be excluded from the scheme.
It is understood that Naidu is leaning towards disbursing the amount in two instalments to avoid placing a heavy burden on the state’s finances at once.
