Tirupati: Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu distributed social security pensions to beneficiaries under the NTR Bharosa scheme at Peddannavari Palli in Talupula mandal, Sri Sathya Sai district, on Saturday.Addressing the people at the Praja Vedika public meeting later at the same village, Naidu asserted that good governance and development are possible only with a stable government, emphasising that public welfare is the paramount focus of the NDA coalition administration.”Even though we have the option to stay indoors and click a button like the previous rulers, as a people’s leader, I choose to come out every month to distribute pensions directly among the people,” the CM stated. “We will not tour behind curtains, as we are people who remain among the populace,” he added, ridiculing the erstwhile government.Naidu noted that the coalition government, elected with a 94% strike rate, is prioritizing welfare and delivering good governance. He contrasted the current efficient pension distribution system (completed within three hours) with the previous government, which required 2.65 lakh volunteers for the same task.The CM highlighted the government’s unprecedented expenditure on pensions, stating that the NDA government has spent Rs 50,764 crore so far, making it the largest Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) in India.”The state spends Rs 33,000 crores annually, covering 28 groups, including the elderly, widows, disabled, and weavers, and 59% of the total amount (Rs 29,951 crores) has gone to women beneficiaries,” CM said. He announced the immediate sanction of widow pensions to the wives of deceased old-age pensioners, correcting a lapse from the previous regime. This month, 8,151 new widow pensions are being issued.The CM announced plans to develop Puttaparthi as a major spiritual centre and recalled his prior commitment to Satya Sai Baba to construct water projects in the surrounding villages, promising to revive these previously halted projects.”The government is preparing to celebrate the Satya Sai Centenary from November 13 to 23. A Ministerial Committee—comprising Ministers Payyavula Keshav, Anagani Satya Prasad, Savitha, Kandula Durgesh, and Satya Kumar Yadav—will oversee the events in collaboration with the Satya Sai Trust,” the CM added.Naidu also announced plans to enhance the Kadiri Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy Temple by developing the Mada Veedhulu (temple streets) and transforming the area into a Divya Kshetram (divine centre).The CM concluded by assuring that justice, though sometimes delayed—as in the recent court judgment sentencing five people in the former Chittoor Mayor couple murder case—will prevail. He emphasised that his administration will not tolerate any misdeeds or lawlessness.
