YSRCP Launches One-Crore Signature Campaign Against Medical College Privatization

Visakhapatnam, Oct 2025 : The opposition YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) is set to launch a massive one-crore signature campaign starting Friday, demanding the rollback of the privatisation of medical colleges in Andhra Pradesh. Party President and former Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy led a large-scale protest at Narsipatnam in Anakapalli district on Thursday.

Addressing the gathering with a semi-finished medical college in the backdrop, Jagan Mohan Reddy criticized the coalition government led by Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu for privatizing medical colleges, which he said would deprive poorer sections of society of access to affordable healthcare and medical education.

He recalled that the YSRCP government had initiated the establishment of 17 medical colleges to make medical education and healthcare accessible to the common people. “Of the 17 medical colleges, five were completed during our term, and classes have already started in Pulivendula and Paderu. Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu has even issued a memo to halt the construction of these colleges with the sole aim of privatizing them,” he said.

Calling hospitals “modern temples,” Jagan Mohan Reddy warned that private operators would exploit the poor, and public health would be at risk under the current government’s policies. He noted that, had all 17 colleges been completed, the total number of medical seats would have reached 4,910, with 2,360 free seats for poor students and the remaining offered at much lower fees compared to private institutions. This, he said, would have allowed millions of families to access affordable medical education and free healthcare.

Jagan Mohan Reddy also took aim at the Chief Minister’s spending priorities. “Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu is willing to spend Rs 2 lakh crore on Amaravati but hesitates to allocate Rs 500 crore for each medical college to ensure public health. This clearly shows where his priorities lie,” he said. He further cited the lack of proper medical facilities in the state, pointing out that patients often have to travel to King George Hospital in Visakhapatnam. The recent incident at the Kurupam hostel, where tribal students fell ill due to contaminated water, highlighted what he described as the government’s “utter neglect.”

Outlining the protest programme, Jagan Mohan Reddy said the Rachabanda outreach initiative would run from October 10 to November 22. During this period, the party will highlight the alleged failures of the Naidu government while collecting one crore signatures. Dharnas will be held at constituency and district headquarters on October 28 and November 12.

The collected signatures will be sent to Vijayawada by November 23, and a formal representation will be submitted to Governor S. Abdul Nazeer. The plan involves moving the signature papers from constituencies to district centres on November 23, and then transporting them to Vijayawada on November 24 for submission to the Governor.

Meanwhile, at the YSRCP central office in Amaravati, the party unveiled a poster for the one-crore signature campaign, with State Coordinator Sajjala Ramakrishna Reddy highlighting that the campaign would continue for over 45 days. The Rachabanda programme will kick off in all 175 constituencies on Friday, with simultaneous release of campaign posters.

As part of the broader agitation strategy, large rallies will be organised at the constituency level on October 28, followed by district-level rallies and submission of memorandums to authorities on November 12, aiming to create statewide awareness and pressure against the medical college privatization plan.