The political drama staged by Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu in the name of distributing pattadar passbooks has spectacularly collapsed. During his visit to Rayavaram in East Godavari district, farmers bluntly told him to his face that they had not been given any passbooks. Despite this, the Chief Minister attempted to pose with them, exposing what many described as political bankruptcy. The episode has reinforced public perception that the present government is focused only on publicity, optics, and media hype, while doing nothing of substance for farmers. As farmers themselves are now saying, except for removing Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy’s photo from passbooks, Chandrababu’s government has delivered nothing new.
Humiliation in Rayavaram
What was projected as a major programme to distribute pattadar passbooks ended in embarrassment for the Chief Minister. Farmers openly stated that they had not received any passbooks, directly contradicting the government’s narrative. The incident stood as living proof that Chandrababu’s administration is engaged in stage-managed events rather than real governance. For the farming community, the Rayavaram episode symbolised a government more invested in show than solutions.
22-A Crisis: A Problem Born Under Chandrababu
The placing of vast extents of farmers’ lands under the prohibited 22-A list originated during Chandrababu Naidu’s earlier tenure. In 2018, thousands of acres were arbitrarily and illegally brought under 22-A, causing severe losses to farmers. In contrast, during Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy’s government, not a single acre was added to the prohibited list. All records remain publicly available online. Farmers are questioning why the present government refuses to examine its own files and instead continues to project Y.S. Jagan as a scapegoat.
Historic re-survey after 100 Years
After a century, it was only under Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy that Andhra Pradesh undertook a comprehensive land re-survey. With central approval, the government launched a historic exercise to permanently resolve land disputes and secure farmers’ rights. Modern features were introduced into pattadar passbooks, including QR codes, digital land maps, latitude-longitude coordinates, and precise boundary identification. Measures were also taken to resolve dotted-land issues, remove unjust 22-A restrictions, and move toward granting full rights over assigned lands. These reforms were aimed at giving farmers clarity, security, and dignity in land ownership.
Credit chor in the Name of ‘Blockchain’ and ‘Cloud’
Today, Chandrababu Naidu speaks of blockchain and cloud systems, but in reality continues to use the very land framework created under the previous government. The current administration has neither introduced a new system nor implemented a genuine reform. Farmers themselves are stating that the only visible change is the removal of Y.S. Jagan’s photograph from passbooks. The entire structure of surveys, mapping, and digital records remains the one built during the YSRCP government.
Double Standards: When Chandrababu’s Photo Was Acceptable
Chandrababu Naidu once freely placed his own photograph on e-Seva certificates. His current objection to Y.S. Jagan’s photo on pattadar passbooks has therefore been termed political hypocrisy. QR coding, digital mapping, and survey integration were all implemented during Y.S. Jagan’s tenure. To denounce today what he practised earlier has only reinforced criticism that Chandrababu’s politics changes colour according to convenience.
From Goebbels Propaganda to Forced acceptance
During the previous government, Chandrababu and yellow media ran relentless propaganda against the re-survey and land reforms, frightening farmers with claims that their lands would be taken away. The Land Titling framework and re-survey were deliberately misrepresented to harvest electoral gains. Ironically, after coming to power, the same leadership has been compelled to accept re-survey as the backbone of land administration, especially to align with central incentives. What was branded “dangerous” then is now being praised as “necessary.”
Election-Time disinformation: an Organised Campaign
During elections, select media houses ran continuous stories against the re-survey and registration framework. Using illegally accessed public data, automated calls were reportedly sent to citizens just days before polling, spreading fear and misinformation. Though cases were registered, they have since gone silent. Farmers and observers describe this as an organised campaign designed purely for political gain.
Yesterday Wrong, Today Right
The present government continues to rely on over 10,000 surveyors recruited earlier, the same advanced equipment, and the same technical backbone created under Y.S. Jagan’s administration. Even while using these resources, propaganda persists that the earlier reforms were wrong and the present actions are right — a contradiction increasingly evident to the public.
What the Re-survey Delivers
Under the re-survey framework:
• Land records are prepared with accuracy up to 10 centimetres.
• Owners receive parcel maps, village maps, and ownership certificates with GPS coordinates, unique IDs, and QR codes.
• Rural and urban lands are surveyed comprehensively for the first time.
• Records become tamper-proof, eliminating double registrations.
• Village secretariats function as sub-registrar offices with real-time updates.
• Mutation and subdivision occur before registration.
• Even absentee owners can participate through video-based verification.
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Ending Decades of Disputes
For decades, unclear records enabled forgery, land grabbing, and endless litigation. The new geo-coordinate-based ownership framework makes manipulation virtually impossible, removes ambiguity between field reality and paper records, and closes the door on encroachments and fake registrations.
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Transparent, People-Centric Process
Under the Jagananna Bhuraksha scheme, re-survey was conducted through a defined SOP in the presence of landowners. Draft records were published, objections invited, verified, corrected, and only then finalised. Ownership rights were declared only after due process, ensuring transparency, participation, and legal robustness.
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Farmers’ Anger Rising
After maligning these historic reforms and extracting political mileage, Chandrababu Naidu today neither meaningfully strengthens them nor stops the propaganda war against Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy. Across districts, farmers are increasingly expressing anger that a government which promised transformation has reduced itself to theatrics and blame-shifting.
