The New Indian Express ·
Politics
Put people first, use tech with human touch: AP CM Chandrababu Naidu
VIJAYAWADA: Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has called upon officials to adopt a people-friendly attitude and focus more on results with speed and accountability. He advised the officials to use technology with human touch to win the confidence of people.
Addressing the concluding session of two-day Collectors conference at the Secretariat on Friday, the Chief Minister stressed the need for team work to achieve better results. He said the government was taking immediate decisions and issuing guidelines from time to time to accelerate governance. Problems, if ignored or kept aside, will only become more complicated, he cautioned.
He said the government had faced several challenges over the past 27 months and brought about changes across various systems. The government was clear about its priorities of welfare, development and good governance, he said, adding that effective law and order is important for delivering good governance.
The Chief Minister said the growth rate at current prices was estimated at 13.44 per cent, while GST collections had recorded 18 per cent growth, and the state’s GSDP growth estimates were higher than the national average.
The Chief Minister said several innovative initiatives being implemented in districts had emerged as best practices that could be adopted across the state. He highlighted the drone project in Alluri Sitarama Raju district, sports schools in Anantapur, the Swarna Bhavitha school initiative in Bapatla, digital learning projects in Chittoor,
PMDS-based measures in Kurnool to reduce the impact of El Niño on crops, the Waste-to-Wealth project in Prakasam and the biochar initiative in Sri Sathya Sai district to improve soil fertility. He said sports schools could help identify and nurture talented youngsters capable of representing the country at the Olympics and Commonwealth Games.
Stating that leadership is the most important factor in bringing about change, the Chief Minister said the two-day conference had resulted in new ideas, the launch of new policy initiatives and discussions aimed at preparing future action plans.He asked officials to encourage capable personnel and continuously upgrade their skills.
The Chief Minister said the government was responsible for signing investment proposals, while district Collectors were responsible for grounding those investments.” Development should not stop because of the negligence of a few officials. He directed Collectors to speed up land allotments for industries that had already received approvals.
The Chief Minister said law and order had always been his first priority. He said some people were committing crimes in political guise and warned that those involved in crimes, including ganja and drug-related offences and atrocities against women and girls, would face stringent action.
At the same time, he instructed the police to remain people-friendly while being firm on law and order and to respond to problems according to the changing needs of society. He also appealed to the police not to inconvenience the public in the name of the Chief Minister’s movements. “Do not stop traffic 15 minutes in advance because the Chief Minister is arriving,” he said.
The CM said the coalition government was following a political governance model, while directing officials to respect elected representatives.
