A major business centre in Kadapa district, Proddatur constituency, known as second Mumbai by virtue of flourishing gold business, is all set to face a keen contest between the Telugu Desam Party and YSR Congress.
Sitting Telugu Desam Party MLA Mallela Linga Reddy, the lone MLA of the major Opposition party in the district, will face a debutant of YSR Congress, which declared former Proddatur municipal chairman, Rachamallu Prasad Reddy, as its candidate. With Nandyala Varadarajulu Reddy, who was elected Proddatur MLA for five consecutive terms from 1985 to 2004, quitting the Congress and joining the TDP, the party is engrossed in searching for a contestant.
Former MLA M.V. Ramana Reddy and former municipal chairman V.S. Mukthiar are sailing with YSR Congress. Congress leader Kovvuru Balachandra Reddy had recently joined the BJP. Jai Samaikyandhra Party has appointed a leader from the weaving community, Chenna Venkatasubbanna, as its constituency convenor and he could be its MLA candidate. He had contested as BJP candidate in 2009 elections.
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Proddatur constituency comprising Proddatur and Rajupalem mandals, has an electorate of 2,18,256 including 1,06,807 male and 1,11,436 women voters. The constituency has an almost equal mix of the Vysya, Reddy, Muslim and weaver communities. In 14 elections held for Proddatur Assembly constituency so far, the Congress bagged the seat in nine elections, the TDP thrice and Independents twice.
Mr. Linga Reddy, an advocate, made his debut to the Legislative Assembly from Proddatur with a margin of 16,156 votes defeating then sitting MLA N. Varadarajulu Reddy in the 2009 elections.
An apparel park proposed to be set up at Gopavaram in Proddatur mandal on 74 acres of land acquired by APIIC during Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy rule, is yet to see the light of the day, though Rs. 5 crore was spent. The park was mooted to set up silk and handloom weaving units, dying and related units.
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Despite being on the banks of Pennar river, Proddatur town is facing acute drinking water paucity with Proddatur municipality supplying around 12 million litres a day as against a requirement of over 16.50 MLD. In order to augment drinking water supply, the YSR Government sanctioned the Kundu-Pennar flood flow canal with an outlay of Rs. 70 crore in 2007, but it remained incomplete. Water released from Mylavaram reservoir was inadequate to mitigate the water scarcity.
The 126-km-long Yerraguntla-Nandyal railway line via Proddatur, conceived and surveyed in 1981 with an outlay of Rs. 9 lakhs, is yet to be completed.
The TDP nominee’s mood is upbeat with his long-term foe in the hustings joining the TDP and the likelihood of an alliance between the TDP and BJP.