Chandrababu Naidu takes oath as first CM of new Andhra Pradesh
Nara Chandrababu Naidu, 64, took oath as the first chief minister of the residuary state of Andhra Pradesh on Sunday at 7.27 pm, thus completing the bifurcation of the state.
At a function attended by lakhs of people, Governor E S L Narasimhan administered the oath of office to Naidu on the 70-acre grounds of Acharya Nagarjuna University, that falls between Vijayawada and Guntur cities.
Naidu will have two deputy chief ministers. They were sworn in along with 17 other Cabinet ministers. N Chinnarajappa, MLA from Peddapuram, and K Krishna Murthy from Kurnool are likely to be the deputy CMs. Two BJP MLAs, Kamineni Srinivas and P Manikyala Rao, have been accommodated in the Cabinet.
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Dr P Narayana, who runs the popular Narayana Group of educational institutions, has also been made a minister.
Political observers said Naidu had played a masterstroke by inducting the BJP in the ministry, ensuring that the Centre pays attention to the development of the state he leads.
All districts of the state have got representation in the Cabinet except Kadapa, which is a YSR Congress Party bastion. Two MLAs each of East Godavari, West Godavari, Guntur and Anantapur, and three of Krishna district are now ministers.
Keeping his election promises, the first decision of Naidu as CM was to sign a file related to waiver of crop loans and loans to women self-help groups and weavers. A committee will be constituted to frame guidelines for the loan waiver, and will have to submit its report in 45 days.
Naidu also signed files related to closure of belt shops (illegal liquor vends in villages), enhancement of pension to Rs 1,000 a month to old people and widows and up to Rs 1,500 in two slabs for physically-challenged, and implementation of NTR Sujala, a scheme for supply of clean drinking water to villages. “We will supply mineral water to needy villages at Rs 2 per 20 litres,” he said.
In another decision, the retirement age of state government employees was raised from 58 to 60 years.
As Naidu’s name was called to take oath at Sunday’s ceremony, there was pandemonium in the assembled crowd, with slogans being raised and lakhs springing to their feet.
Although Naidu had personally invited newly sworn in Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhara Rao and YSR Congress Party leader Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy to the swearing-in, both stayed away. While KCR cited a tight schedule, Jagan said he did not want to be part of the “pomp and extravagance” of Naidu’s oath-taking.
But the extravagant show with folk and cultural programmes did see senior political leaders, film stars and business
Chandrababu Naidu Signs Five Files at Swearing-In
Guntur, Andhra Pradesh: Soon after taking oath as chief minister of Andhra Pradesh late Sunday evening, Chandrababu Naidu signed five files to fulfill his poll promises.
Mr Naidu announced the setting up of a committee to work out modalities to waive loans of farmers, women self-help groups and weavers.
The Telugu Desam Party chief said the panel would submit its report in 15 days. He assured the people that he would implement the report in 45 days.
At the swearing-in, Mr Naidu signed another file to increase monthly pension of the aged and widows to Rs.1,000. The handicapped will get pension of Rs.1,500.
He also announced closure of all 'belt shops' or illegal liquor outlets.
Amid thunderous applause from the massive crowd, Mr Naidu said his government would also implement the NTR Sujala Sravanti Scheme, under which people will get 20 litres of mineral water for Rs.2.
Lauding the role played by government employees for a united Andhra Pradesh, he promised to increase their retirement age from 58 to 60 years.
New Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu Vows to be 'Coolie No One'
Telugu Desam Party (TDP) chief N Chandrababu Naidu was on Sunday sworn in as the first chief minister of Andhra Pradesh post its bifurcation at a function at Nagarjuna Nagar, 18 kilometres from Vijaywada.
"I will work as 'Coolie No.1' to rebuild the state into a Swarna (golden) Andhra Pradesh, a sunrise country and a knowledge hub. I will strive to make AP the No.1 state in the country with your participation and co-operation," Mr Naidu said as he dedicated TDP's victory in the elections to the Telugu people.
Governor ESL Narasimhan administered the oath of office and secrecy to Mr Naidu at 7.27 P.M., the auspicious time set for the occasion.
Several Union ministers, chief ministers and top leaders of the BJP and other NDA parties were present on the occasion. Mr Naidu took his oath in Telugu amidst thunderous cheers by party workers.
His Cabinet with 19 ministers, including three women, was also sworn in at the function. The first meeting of the Cabinet is scheduled to be held in the port city of Visakhapatnam although the date for it has not been fixed yet, Mr Naidu said.
He paid obeisance at the statue of Telugu Talli (reverential mother of Telugus) on the dais before taking oath. Braving the blistering heat, lakhs of people attended the ceremony on a sprawling 70-acre open site opposite Acharya Nagarjuna University. Union ministers Rajnath Singh, M Venkaiah Naidu, Anantha Kumar, Kalraj Mishra, Prakash Javadekar, Nirmala Sitharaman, Harsh Vardhan and Piyush Goyal attended the function.
Among the chief ministers in attendance were Parkash Singh Badal of Punjab, Manohar Parrikar of Goa, Vasundhara Raje Scindia of Rajasthan, Raman Singh of Chhattisgarh and TR Zeliang of Nagaland.
Veteran BJP leaders LK Advani, Murali Manohar Joshi, Tamil Nadu minister R Vaidyalingam, MDMK chief Vaiko, Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray, Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) leader Abhay Chautala, Akali Dal MP Naresh Gujral and a host of other dignitaries also attended the event.
Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha, PJ Kurien, and Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal were also present.
Bollywood actor Vivek Oberoi was the star attraction at the event along with Telugu film stars Pawan Kalyan, NTR Junior and Kalyan Ram.
Art of Living guru Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, badminton great Pullela Gopichand, top industrialists like G Mallikarjuna Rao of GMR Group and a host of other VIPs, too, attended the function.
In all 19 ministers, including two from TDP's ally BJP, were sworn in tonight along with Mr Naidu. Senior legislators KE Krishna Murthy, Yanamala Ramakrishunudu, Ayyannapatrudu, Devineni Umamaheswara Rao, N China Rajappa, Palle Raghunath Reddy, Pattipati Pulla Rao and Bojjala Gopalakrishna Reddy, who remained loyal to the party through the thick and thin, were inducted into the new state's first cabinet.
Krishna Murthy and Rajappa are tipped to be designated as Deputy Chief Ministers in keeping with the election promise made by Chandrababu Naidu.
Ganta Srinivasa Rao, who served as a Cabinet member in the previous Kiran Kumar Reddy government but returned to TDP on the eve of the recent elections, was also made a minister.
Women legislators Paritala Sunita, Kimidi Mrunalini and Peethala Sujatha, too, found place in the Council of Ministers.
Educationist P Narayana, who is not a legislator yet, was also sworn in. He is expected to be soon nominated to the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Council.
BJP MLAs Kamineni Srinivas and P Manikyala Rao were also given Cabinet berths with TDP making its ally a partner in the government.
Former Union minister the late K Yerran Naidu's younger brother and three-time MLA Atchannaidu was made a minister for the first time.
First-time MLAs Ravela Kishore Babu and Kollu Ravindra also made it to the Cabinet as per the caste equations. Ravela belongs to the Scheduled Caste community while Ravindra is from a backward caste.
Of the 19 ministers, two are from the SC community while seven belong to backward castes. Barring Kadapa, all remaining districts have been given representation in the Cabinet.
Yanamala and Kamineni Srinivas were the only ministers to take oath in English; the others all took their oath in Telugu.
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