VIJAYAWADA: Asking his party activists and cadre to take the ongoing panchayat elections seriously, TDP chief and Opposition leader N Chandrababu Naidu on Sunday asked the party leaders to ensure that panchayats don’t end up in the hands of YSRC ‘goons’, ‘who will destroy the villages’.

In a teleconference with the TDP representatives and in-charges of 175 Assembly constituencies, Naidu said the party members should be ready to face any eventuality and attempt by the government to terrorise them in the name of bind over cases, and that abduction of contesting candidates will not be tolerated. “Scuttle the ruling party’s attempts to lure people with the help of volunteers, and lodge complaints wherever any such attempt is made,” he said.

Alleging that the ruling YSRC will destroy the villages, Naidu reiterated that ‘grama swarajyam’ can be achieved only by the TDP. “Our government had developed villages by taking up initiatives such as ‘Janmabhoomi-Maa Uru’, ‘Smart Village-Smart Ward’, ‘grama darshini’ and others,” Naidu said, adding that his government had made villages clean and gave importance to the public health.

Naidu said the panchayats get funds under the MGNREGA, and from the 15th Finance Commission, stamp duty and mining cess and others to the tune of Rs 14,000 crore per year. “This means that 13,371 panchayats should get Rs 1 crore every year. Every elected sarpanch will get Rs 5 crore for development works during his or her five year tenure,’’ he said, and asked the cadre to come forward without fear and file nominations for the posts of sarpanches and ward members.