It is everyone’s knowledge in Andhra Pradesh that NREGS funds in the state were misused during 2014-19, the regime headed by TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu.
It was during Naidu’s regime most of the TDP leaders have become contractors siphoning off the funds particularly under the NREGS.
They have executed several works like Neeru Chettu, Cheruvu Matti through which they collected huge amounts.
When Jagan Mohan Reddy took over the state, he stopped payments to the NREGS contractors and ordered for an enquiry.
The TDP contractors have held series of protests and Chandrababu Naidu too backed them. Some filed cases in the high court too.
Today, the state government found that a total of 1,19,964 cases were filed in which Rs 264.34 crore were misused.
This would come around 24,000 cases per year and Rs 52 crore per annum, which is not a small amount.
Minister for Panchayat Raj and Rural Development, Peddireddy Ramachandra Reddy, said that the Central government had also listed this misuse of NREGS funds in its social audit reports.
The TDP leaders who were out of power for 10 years from 2004 to 2014, must have been hungry to get some money and found NREGS the best scheme to siphon off.
It is to be seen how the present government would act to get these funds back to the exchequer.