Senior Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP) leader V Vijayasai Reddy on Tuesday met Union Panchayat Raj Minister Giriraj Singh and appealed for the release of Rs 6,750 crore in funds, due to the state under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) programme. "A delegation of YSRCP MPs met Giriraj Singh and requested him to release Rs 6,750 crore due to the state," said Reddy, who led the delegation. The senior party leader and Rajya Sabha MP was accompanied by MPs Margani Bharat, Mithun Reddy and Mopidevi Venkataramana, among others.
According to reports, the MPs have further informed the Union Minister that Andhra Pradesh had topped all states in implementation, by providing 18.4 crore person days of employment to wage seekers under the MNREGA scheme. And it was further stated that Andhra has stood first at the national level in providing maximum number of average days of employment per household upto June 2021, since the beginning of the scheme in 2006. The MPs added that as many as nine districts achieved 1 crore person-days of employment as well.
The delegation also met Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari, and requested him to complete the road development work on the Sabbavaram-Narsipatnam-Tuni stretch in Andhra Pradesh.
In another development, Vijayasai Reddy announced that the state government is offering laptops to the poor students under the Jagananna Vasati Devena scheme.He said the laptops will be given under basic and advanced categories. "In case there are any defects with them, a complaint in the village and ward secretariats will resolve the issue in a week's time," he said. Reddy further said that the laptop distribution is aimed at guiding the poor students pursuing higher education into the digital era, as envisioned by Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy. He said the Higher Education Department has already issued directives to this effect.