VIJAYAWADA: The AP government has increased the social security pension to Rs 2,750 per person from Rs 2,500. This raise would benefit 62.31 lakh people in the state. The government also decided to give another two lakh new pensions to the weaker sections and distribute five lakh electronic tabs to students.
The AP Cabinet gave its nod to raise the social security pension from January 1, benefiting 62.31 lakh persons and extend the pension facility to another two lakh persons from the New Year.
The YSRC government was committed to raising the old age pension to Rs 3,000 per person as part of its election manifesto. So far, the government increased the old age pension amount in two instalments to Rs 2,250 and Rs 2,500. With the amount enhanced to Rs 2,750, the government would spend an additional Rs 130.44 crore per month and Rs 1,720 crore per annum.
Currently, there are over 62.31 lakh pensioners in AP. Their number would be increased to 64.74 lakh after including the 2.43 lakh new pensioners from December. With this, the monthly expenditure for pensions will be Rs 1,786 crore.
The other key decisions are installation of state-of-the-art teaching aids in the schools where the works have been completed under the Nadu-Nedu phase-I.
The setting up of Interactive Plot Panels (IFP) in every classroom in high schools and Smart TV rooms in Foundation and Foundation Plus schools has also been approved. Around Rs 300 crore would be spent for setting up IFPs in 30,230 classrooms in 15,694 schools from Class VII to X.
This is apart from installation of 10,000 smart TVs in every school from Class I to X at a cost of Rs 50 crore. The government would formally launch a programme on December 21 to make tabs and e-content available to students of Class VIII in government schools round-the-clock.
Around 4.6 lakh students pursuing Class VIII and 60,000 members of the faculty (teachers) would be given the tabs with a three-year warranty at a cost of Rs 668 crore.
In addition, a private online education player’s content worth Rs 778 crore is also available to the state’s students for free.
The Cabinet approved the implementation of welfare schemes for all the poor under Navaratnalu, those who have been left behind earlier due to various reasons. On December 27, as many as 2.51 lakh people will be benefited to the tune of Rs 403 crore.
In addition to this, 2.63 lakh new pensions, 44,543 rice cards, 14,441 Aarogyasri Cards, 14,531 house titles and insurance claims worth Rs 65 crore were sanctioned.
The Cabinet also approved the ratification of the Welfare Calendar implemented in May and June 2022 in the agriculture, cooperation and fisheries departments. The irrigation water release schedule was implemented earlier in the state for Kharif 2022.
The Cabinet approved the new Animal Husbandry Polytechnic College to be set up at Santhagudipadu in Rompicherla mandal of Palnadu district, the filling up of two radiographers posts in state institute of animal husbandry (Tanuku), and an area veterinary hospital (Gopalapatnam) at Visakhapatnam under the animal husbandry department through APCOS in outsourcing mode.
Approvals were also given to amendments in the Dr. YSR Free Crop Insurance and Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana Scheme, the creation of 108 posts including of 52 teaching staff and 56 non-teaching staff in the Mekapati Gautam Reddy agricultural college established in Udayagiri, Nellore district.
The Cabinet also decided to change the name of YSR Pasu Bhima Scheme (Live Stock Insurance Scheme) as part of National Live Stock Mission and increase the capacity of community health centre in Sadum, Chittoor district, from 30 to 50 beds. As part of this, 18 additional posts will be filled.
The filling up the posts of three professors, three assistant professors, four professors, three associate professors and two assistant professors in the PG department as part of the programme to provide the best education in NTR district’s Vijayawada Government Ayurveda College as per the guidelines of the National Commission for Indian System of Medicine got the final approval from the Cabinet.
The Cabinet gave its approval for the works undertaken under the APMSIDC as part of the Nadu-Nedu in the department of medicine and health. As a part of this, approvals were given for the newly constructed and already-in-use medical colleges, multi-speciality hospitals, super speciality blocks and cancer care centres.
The Cabinet gave final approval to the proposals to set up multi and super speciality hospitals in the private sector in 16 municipal corporations, sanctioning of 40 posts of 20 teaching and non-teaching posts for each ITI along with setting up new departments in minority government industrial training institutes at Adoni, Kurnool district and Rayachoti, Annamayya district.
The Cabinet gave its nod for the following: Amendments to Andhra Pradesh Right of Children to Pre and Compulsory Education Rules-2010 regarding the school education department; inclusion of Rule No30 to the Andhra Pradesh Right of Children to Pre and Compulsory Education Rules-2010; creation of 55 additional posts under various categories in the newly established Andhra Pradesh Judicial Academy.
The Cabinet approved amendments to the Andhra Pradesh Rights in Land and Pattadar Passbook Act – 1971; allotment of government land for the establishment of various government offices in the newly established five districts; allotment of 7.45 acres of land to the Vishwamanava Samayyakita Sansad for construction of a super specialty block (mother and child care) hospital in Nadimpalem village of Prattipadu mandal of Guntur district.
Sanction was also given to the allotment of the remaining 8.32 acres of land free of charge for the upgradation of the government medical college and government hospital in Anantapur.
The final sanction was given for the allotment of 15 acres of land to IOCL on lease basis for setting up wind turbines in Gandikota, Jammulamadu mandal, YSR district; a Chief PRO post for giving publicity to some departments in the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD) and for once again initiating a milk revolution in Rayalaseema districts.
