Cabinet junks reverse tendering system

Vijayawada : The first e-cabinet of the TDP-led NDA government on Wednesday decided to abolish the reverse tendering system introduced by the previous YSRCP government. The cabinet decided to revert back to the old tendering system as per guidelines of the Central Vigilance Commission.

Briefing the media after the cabinet meeting, Minister for Information and Public Relations K Parthasarathi said that the previous government introduced a reverse tendering system only to benefit their henchmen.

The Minister said that the cabinet decided to take up Polavaram Left main canal works to meet both drinking and industrial needs of Visakhapatnam. For this purpose it has decided to allot Rs 926 crore.

The cabinet also decided to revamp the Excise department. The previous government had split it into two wings, Excise and Special Enforcement Bureau but the system failed. It only promoted ‘J’ brands and killed national brands resulting in loss of Rs 18,000 crore to the exchequer.

The minister said that the cabinet approved to set up 2,774 new ration shops by allotting Rs 11.51 crore towards infrastructure. It would also order a thorough probe into irregularities in assignment lands. He said of the 36 lakh acre assigned lands 29 lakh acre lands were found to be encroached. He said the majority of the assigned lands of SCs and STs were encroached.

Another major decision was to rename the Krishnapatnam Industrial City Development Ltd (NICDIT) as AP Industrial Corridor Infrastructure Corporation Ltd (ICIDCL) in the wake of the Centre sanctioning two new industrial smart cities at Orvakal and Kopparthy.

Among other decisions were to fill 269 posts in Secretariat with B.Com candidates as per the court orders to set up AP industrial Corridor Infrastructure Corporation, to remove the photos of former CM Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy from pattadar pass books and print state emblem in its place. As part of its efforts to strengthen law and order, the cabinet decided to link the 14,000 CCTV cameras with private CCTV cameras installed at various places for seamless monitoring by the police department.

The cabinet announced the approval for filling 269 supernumerary positions within the municipal department. This decision, intended to enhance municipal services, reflects the government's commitment to strengthening local governance. Additionally, the cabinet has sanctioned the establishment of 2,771 new ration shops under the Civil Supplies Department. The cabinet also decided to revive the system of water user associations for irrigation.