Blaming the previous regime for the destruction of the brand Andhra Pradesh, Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Monday exhorted the bureaucrats to rebuild the state.

Addressing a day-long conference with district collectors and other senior officials at the Secretariat in Velagapudi, Naidu announced the launch of “Pedala Sevalo” (in the service of the poor) programme to be held on the first of every month across the state which would be aimed at engaging with citizens and redressing their grievances.

The chief minister urged the officers to counter the fake propaganda being spread by certain elements to defame his government.

Reminding that everyone suffered losses including the bureaucrats, he said, “This is a historical conference that will rewrite history. In the first collector’s conference, the former chief minister (YS Jagan Mohan Reddy) had ordered the demolition of Praja Vedika (built during TDP rule). His rule started with demolition and he destroyed the entire Andhra Pradesh. Brand AP has been damaged. The morale of officers has been hit. Now, we are starting with the positive intention to rebuild AP. We have to work hard to rebuild the state, which has been totally destroyed.”

He said the government officers lost their image because the previous regime sidelined or blackmailed them though in the past officers from Andhra were held in high esteem in Delhi. He urged them to “Work hard, work smart and think globally.”

He gave a call to the bureaucrats in the state to dedicate themselves to the reconstruction of the state and directed the collectors to draw up a vision document with changes that will be effective in the next 100 days on ground.

Naidu emphasised on simple government but effective governance and hence announced the decision to hold Pedala Sevalo. He pointed out that there are a huge number of cases of land grabbing by YSRCP leaders and people flock to the TDP office seeking redressal. The state government will soon replace the image of YS Jagan Mohan Reddy from the pattadar passbook with the official state seal.

The chief minister announced that the ‘Vision AP’ document would be released on 2 October and directed officials to provide comprehensive information and analogy to make it effective. Asking officers to counter any fake propaganda on social media to defame the government he said “We won’t do political victimization. At the same time, we won’t spare anyone who has done wrong. I am very clear on that.”