Poll drive begins in earnest in Kadapa

The seriousness of the Congress to hand out a crushing defeat to former MP YS Jaganmohan Reddy in his home turf of Kadapa can be gauged by the fact that the party has begun its preparations for the full length campaign for the by-election in earnest.

The preparations have begun even as the official notification is yet to be issued.

The intense desire of the Congress leadership to win the Kadapa Lok Sabha seat and the Pulivendula Assembly seat is seen as the one reason why the ruling party chose to delay the timing of the mass contact programme Racha Banda in the district.

The delay in holding Racha Banda there is seen as mainly to derive the desired impact from the electorate from the flagship programme which facilitates distribution of assets to the poor people.

Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy will make his presence felt in the Racha Banda programme on February 11 in Kadapa - the hot bed of politics and the bastion of the YSR family.

That the said mass contact programme will come in handy for the party functionaries in the district to enlist the support of voters is a foregone conclusion.

The Chief Minister is also expected to make a night halt in the district to facilitate meetings with the local party leaders and discuss with them on local issues apart from providing a 'yardstick' to instil confidence among them to work in support of the ruling party candidate's success in the by-election.

Medial and Health Services Minister D L Ravindra Reddy, who is from Mydukur constituency, on Monday expressed confidence about the Chief Minister's programme which is sufficient for penetration of the party's message into the electorate.

He was also confident that his party would win the elections despite high expectation from their rivals' camp.

The Minister had a meeting with 20-Point Economic Programme Chairman N Tulasi Reddy and Minister for Wakf and Minorities' Welfare Syed Ahmedullah at the Secretariat on Monday and held discussions on Racha Banda programme scheduled for February 11 and the Lok Sabha election strategy in his Chambers.

Later Dr Ravindra Reddy told media persons that the Chief Minister will start a 250 MW power substation and attend Racha Banda meetings in Kadapa and then in Duvvuru.

Mr Kiran Kumar Reddy will distribute house-site certificates, pensions, Pavvala Vaddi among others to the beneficiaries. He will also unveil a statue of former minister P Sari Reddy in the district.

The Galeru Nagari flood flow canal progress, Gandikota tunnel, KC Canal will also come under the purview of the Chief Minister's enquiry.