It appears that Telugu Desam Party president and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu is not particularly interested in continuing the village/ward volunteer system introduced by the previous Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy government.
Though Naidu had promised before the assembly elections that he would not only retain the volunteer system but also increase their monthly remuneration from Rs 5,000 to Rs 10,000.
During the elections, nearly one lakh volunteers resigned from their jobs and participated in the campaign for the YSR Congress Party. Another 1.4 lakh volunteers remained in their roles, hoping to continue under the new government.
Since Naidu came to power in June, he has largely ignored the issue of retaining the village and ward volunteers who did not resign. Initially, there were talks that he would address their situation immediately, but this did not happen.
His government has not utilized their services in the distribution of pensions and other schemes, as the previous government did, signaling that the distribution of benefits could proceed even without the volunteers.
The issue reportedly came up during cabinet meetings a couple of times, but no decision was made. Naidu asked officials to devise a strategy on how to utilize the services of volunteers and provide a comprehensive report.
Naidu proposed offering volunteers training in various skill development programs and using their services in different departments. However, no such program has been announced yet.
The volunteers, who have not received their salaries since June, have threatened to stage protests if the government does not take any action.
On Wednesday, Naidu stated that he is still working on a plan to utilize the volunteers' services. Until then, the fate of the volunteers remains uncertain.