Vijayawada: Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Friday described the distribution of new pattadar passbooks bearing the state emblem as a new year’s gift to farmers, asserting that the initiative fulfils a key electoral promise to correct land record distortions caused by the previous government.

Reviewing the statewide passbook distribution programme through a teleconference with ministers and senior officials, the Chief Minister said the exercise marked a decisive break from the past, when land ownership documents carried the photograph of the then Chief Minister instead of official state insignia. He said the earlier regime’s “haphazard resurvey” had turned even undisputed lands into sources of conflict, creating widespread distress in rural areas.

The distribution of around 22 lakh new title deed passbooks has begun in villages where the resurvey process has been completed and will continue from January 2 to January 9. Ministers and MLAs launched the programme simultaneously across thousands of villages, with local administrations organising the exercise in a festive manner. The passbooks carrying the former Chief Minister’s image have been replaced with the State emblem.

Revenue minister Anagani Satya Prasad briefed the Chief Minister on the implementation plan, including district-wise schedules and grievance redressal mechanisms. Chandrababu Naidu said land is the very basis of farmers’ livelihoods and stressed that ensuring freedom from land disputes must be the government’s primary responsibility. He noted that the repeal of the Land Titling Act enacted by the previous government had removed a deep sense of insecurity among landowners. The Chief Minister criticised the earlier administration for spending Rs 22 crore on printing personal photographs on passbooks, calling it a misuse of public funds. “Today, the distribution of new passbooks is bringing joy to every household,” he said, adding that officials must work within clear timelines to permanently resolve land-related issues.

He directed ministers and district collectors to take personal responsibility for addressing errors and grievances and announced that he would personally participate in the passbook distribution programme on one day during the ongoing exercise. The government, he said, is committed to restoring trust in land administration and ensuring that farmers are not burdened by avoidable disputes.