Kandukuru and Gudur likely to return to Prakasam and Nellore following popular demand

Nellore: Responding to popular demand and for administrative reasons, the state government is likely to return the Kandukuru segment back to the Prakasam district.

The government is already toying with the idea of merging the Gudur segment back with Nellore district to facilitate Port-based infrastructure development under the Visakhapatnam – Chennai Industrial Corridor built around Krishnapatnam Port.

As for Kandukuru, TD chief Chandrababu Naidu’s assurance during the Maha Nadu that he will merge Kandukuru back with Prakasam district following appeals from his partymen reportedly encouraged the government to consider the request. Similar demands were already coming from YSR leaders including Kandukuru legislator Manugunta Mahidhar Reddy.

Mahidhar Reddy has been urging the government to keep the area Prakasam district, citing its proximity to Ongole city, the headquarters of Prakasam. “Nellore is located 110km away and Ongole is only 40km from Kandukuru. When we have official work in Amaravati, we have to go to Nellore, which is south of Kandukuru, to collect the papers and return to Amaravti in the north. This meant a travel of 220km up and down, wasting precious petrol/diesel and time,” Mahidhar said.

Speaking to DC, he said the number of mandals in Kandukuru division reduced to seven from 24 after reorganisation of districts.

“Kandukuru was a second-biggest division after Mandanapalle and headed by a sub collector (IAS), but now the head is only an RDO.

Similarly, the DSP post also will be lost as the division became very small,” Mahidhar Reddy said, explaining why the people of the region want to be with Prakasam district.

The original plan was to merge two mandals from Gudur, which went to Tirupati district, back to Nellore; and merge two mandals in Kandukuru segment with Prakasam.

However, the government may merge the entire Kandukuru segment back with Prakasam and the entire Gudur segment with Nellore in view of the calls from politicos and industrialists, citing the proximity of the two segments to the district headquarters, an official said.

He hinted that a notification is likely to be issued soon after lifting the model code of conduct that is in force till June 28, 2022.