Hans News Service Hanumakonda

Transportand BC Welfare Minister Ponnam Prabhakar stated that the government is moving forward with the objective of achieving the comprehensive development of villages.

He explained that the “Palle Palleku Ponnam Anna – Palle Pallelo Praja Palana” (Ponnam Anna to every village – People’s Governance in Every Village) programme aims to directly understand the issues faced by villagers and initiate measures to resolve them in the presence of officials.

The Minister visited Veerlagadda Thanda in Bheemadevarapalli mandal. At the Gram Panchayat office, he held a review meeting with officials and public representatives regarding village development and the implementation of welfare schemes. He received representations from villagers concerning various issues and directed the concerned officials to take immediate action to resolve them.

Officials briefed the Minister on the welfare and development programmes being implemented in the village since the formation of the “Praja Palana” programme. The Minister also distributed smart cards—a flagship initiative of the government—to the beneficiaries. When villagers requested the reopening of the closed government school in the village, the Minister assured them that steps would be taken to restart it by providing all necessary infrastructure to facilitate student admissions for the upcoming academic year. The villagers also brought issues regarding internal village roads, distributary canals of the Gauravelli project, and ‘Indiramma’ housing schemes to the Minister’s attention.

He directed the concerned officials to discuss these issues and take measures to resolve them.

The Minister remarked that every village faces certain challenges and noted that people and local public representatives offer suggestions and submit representations with the aim of further developing their villages. He added that village-level issues are being identified and documented in the presence of officials, with measures being taken to resolve them in a phased manner. He explained that, alongside assessing the reach of government welfare and development programmes, they are formulating development plans based on public suggestions regarding necessary infrastructure. Given the current low rainfall, the Minister advised everyone to harvest every drop of rainwater to replenish groundwater levels. He emphasised that abundant groundwater is essential for improving agriculture and crop yields. He urged farmers to focus on crop diversification suited to local conditions, suggesting that cultivating alternative crops—particularly oil palm—on a portion of their land could yield better long-term income.

The Minister commended Lavudya Mangya, who is engaged in oil palm cultivation. Officials were directed to create awareness among farmers regarding the benefits of oil palm cultivation and the assistance provided by the government.

Instructions were issued to ensure that government welfare schemes reach every eligible individual. Officials noted that the pension application process would continue until the 31st of this month and were directed to widely publicize the government welfare and health services available to the public. Officials were directed to create awareness among the public about this scheme.