A year of gains and political turmoil for Andhra. india news

In contrast, it proved to be a difficult year for the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP), as many of its leaders went to jail in connection with various scams and cases.

After overcoming several political and administrative hurdles, Naidu’s dream project – Amaravati – returned to the national spotlight. In May, Prime Minister Narendra Modi restarted long-stalled capital city works that were abandoned during the previous YS Jagan Mohan Reddy government.

At the beginning of the year, the World Bank released US$207 million, about half of which has already been used for capital operations, while another tranche of US$200 million is expected shortly.

In addition, Germany’s KfW Bank agreed to extend an HUDCO approves loan of Rs 5,000 crore 11,000 crore, and the Center provided Rs 1,560 crore in grants. Naidu set a three-year deadline for completing major government infrastructure projects.

As part of his expanded vision for Amaravati, the Chief Minister launched the second phase of the Land Pooling Scheme (LPS), targeting 16,666 acres of land in seven villages, to complement the already existing 54,000 acres.

However, this move triggered protests from farmers, with the YSRCP strongly opposing the scheme and demanding justice for the farmers who had given up land during the first phase before further land acquisition.

Completion of Amaravati is also central to Naidu’s Quantum Vision, which seeks to establish the capital as a global innovation hub. A key component of this plan is the proposed Quantum Valley, which is envisioned as one of the world’s top five quantum computing ecosystems.

Being the key coalition partner of the National Democratic Alliance government at the Centre, Naidu made every effort to use his influence to extract maximum benefits for the state from the Centre. On January 8, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Visakhapatnam and launched development projects 2 lakh crore, which also includes India’s first green hydrogen hub at Puducherry.

Within a week, on January 17, the Center made an announcement Rs 11,440 crore bailout package for the crisis-hit Visakhapatnam Steel Plant – a project with deep emotional significance for the people of Andhra Pradesh.

The move highlighted the Centre’s willingness to make extra efforts to support its regional ally.

The Naidu government also moved quickly to attract industrial giants to the state with support from the Centre.

This year, ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel got government approval to set up India’s largest greenfield steel plant at Anakapalle and the Center approved transportation of iron ore from Bailadila mines.

But the biggest achievement for the Naidu government was attracting US$15 billion AI Google data center investment in Visakhapatnam, even more than the investment pledges Rs 13 lakh crore and inauguration of Ratan Tata Innovation Hub (RTIH) at the CII Partnership Summit.

Together, all this strengthened Naidu’s effort to transform Andhra Pradesh into a hub of future technologies, green energy and innovation.

The NDA government also accepted Naidu’s recommendation to appoint veteran TDP leader P Ashok Gajapathi Raju as Governor of Goa and another senior leader Kanakamedala Ravindra Kumar as Additional Solicitor General.

The Prime Minister’s participation in the International Yoga Day in Visakhapatnam was another example of Naidu’s growing influence in the central coalition.

However, the year also ended with greater scrutiny of TDP ministers at the Centre. The IndiGo crisis exposed the limited administrative grip of Union Civil Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu.

What could have been a defining national moment became an exercise in damage control.

During 2025, the coalition government fulfilled a significant portion of its election promises, with the “Super Six” plans emerging as key initiatives.

Under Talliki Vandanam, Rs 10,090 crore was deposited directly into the accounts of mothers, benefiting 6.72 million students.

The Stree Shakti free bus travel scheme, launched on August 15, recorded 32.5 million trips. Rs 1,144 crore and later it was extended to persons with disabilities.

Farmer welfare remained priority Rs 6,310 crore was given to 4.6 million farmers under Annadata Sukhibhava.

Through DIPAM-2, women received three free LPG cylinders annually, covering the cost of Rs. 2,684 crore and distribution of about two crore cylinders. Social security pension disbursement crosses historical level Whereas, 50,000 crores Rs 250 crore released under Matsyakara Bharosa to benefit 125,000 fishermen.

Additional welfare initiatives include assistance to auto drivers, honorarium for priests, imams and muezzins, enhanced salaries for priests and new Brahmins and monthly honorarium for junior lawyers.

With the reopening of 204 canteens, the revival of Anna Canteens resulted in over 40 million meals being served.

On the employment front, the government took steps towards its promise of creating 2 million jobs, conducting a mega recruitment drive of 15,491 teachers, completing the recruitment of 5,757 police constables, increasing the stipend for trainee constables and extending gratuity benefits to Anganwadi workers and ASHAs.

610 MOUs with investment commitments signed at CII Partnership Summit alone Rs 13.25 lakh crore, potential to generate more than 16 lakh jobs.

However, some promises have only been partially fulfilled. While Talliki Vandanam and Annadata Sukhibhav were implemented, complaints surfaced regarding sorting of beneficiary lists.

Major election promises – like 3,000 monthly unemployment allowance and “Ada Bidda Fund” ( ₹1,500 per month for women aged 19-59) – Not yet implemented.

In 2025, the TDP focused heavily on reconnecting with grassroots workers, offering direct access to Naidu and youth leader Nara Lokesh. The party’s main strength lies in the synergy of its leadership – a father-son duo who combine experience and new age energy.

While hopes were high for Lokesh’s elevation as TDP working president at the Mahanadu convention in May, Naidu adopted a cautious approach.

To address the discontent among leaders who were ignored for nominated posts, the TDP moved quickly to fill organizational roles from village to state level, with a clear eye on repeating its 2024 election success in 2029.

For the Jana Sena Party, 2025 was less about slogans and more about responsibility. Under the leadership of Pawan Kalyan, the party deliberately shifted from emotional politics to administrative engagement.

Although criticized for low visibility, Jana Sena focused on strengthening governance credibility and laying the groundwork to become a fully cadre-based party by 2029.

As a coalition partner, the BJP did not achieve any major political success in the state, but it intensified its organizational reach. Newly appointed state BJP president PVN Madhav took a statewide tour to build unity and chalk out a long-term plan to expand the party’s independent presence.

For the YSR Congress Party, 2025 was a year of introspection out of power.

The party faced testing times during the year, with several of its leaders jailed in a liquor scam that allegedly occurred during the previous Jagan regime. They include: Jagan’s close associates – PV Mithun Reddy, Chevireddy Bhaskar Reddy, P Krishna Mohan Reddy, former IAS officer K Dhananjay Reddy, Kesireddy Rajasekhara Reddy etc.

While former minister Jogi Ramesh was arrested in the spurious liquor case, former minister Kakani Govardhan Reddy and former MLAs Vallabhaneni Vamsi and Pinneli Ramakrishna Reddy, Posani Krishna Murali, among others, were arrested in several other cases.

The Tirumala ghee adulteration case, the Parakamani foreign exchange theft case and the forest land encroachment case showed YSRCP leaders in a bad light. Several social media workers and activists of the YSRCP also faced prison terms for allegedly spreading false propaganda against the coalition government.

However, Jagan made every effort to highlight the failures of the TDP-led coalition government. The party organized protests and opposed government policies and was successful in preventing organizational fragmentation and maintaining cadre loyalty.

The YSRCP chief continued to take to the streets and raised issues like MSP for farmers, cyclone compensation, Dalit atrocities, poisonous liquor and unfulfilled promises. His campaign against the alleged privatization of 10 government medical colleges gained momentum, helping him collect over ten million signatures in protest.

The state was rocked by a series of tragedies in 2025. The year began with six devotees killed and 35 others injured in a stampede in Tirupati on January 8 as thousands jostled for tickets for the 10-day Vaikuntha Dwara Darshanam at the Lord Venkateswara Swamy temple on the Tirumala Hills.

On April 30, seven people, including four from the same family, were killed and four others were injured when a wall adjacent to the queue line collapsed on devotees at the Sri Varaha Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy Temple in Simhachalam, Visakhapatnam.

On November 1, nine people were killed and 25 others were injured when a railing collapsed in a stampede at the Sri Venkateswara Swamy Temple at Palasa-Kasibugga in Srikakulam district.

In October, a Bengaluru-bound sleeper bus caught fire in Kurnool district, killing 19 passengers and sending shockwaves across the country.

Severe cyclonic storm Montha kills three people and causes estimated damage 5,233 crores.

On the security front, 13 Maoists, including top leader Madvi Hidma, were killed in two encounters near Maredumili in November, significantly weakening the left-wing insurgency.

More than 50 Maoists surrendered during the year, and police said only 13 cadres linked to Andhra Pradesh were active, mainly along the Andhra-Odisha border.