Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Friday said that the government had disbursed 97.54 per cent pensions on the first day. He said that the government officials have joined hands together to make the pensions distribution a success.

The chief minister said that the government had distributed Rs 2,737 crore to 64 lakh beneficiaries across the state. He said that this was the record for itself as never before the pension distribution in the state touched 97 per cent on the first day. He thanked the government employees for making the pension distribution a success.

He said that the welfare of the pensioners was the priority and responsibility of this government. He said that this government would give highest priority to the safety of the pensioners. The increased pension would give some guarantee to the safety and welfare of the pensioners, the chief minister said.

Government employees are part of the government, he said. The government employees play a key role in taking the government programmes to the doorsteps of the beneficiaries, he said. He said that the government had paid salaries to the government employees on the first day of the month. The government paid Rs 5,300 crore towards salaries to the government employees, the chief minister said.

The role of the government employees and senior officials is important in rebuilding the state, Chandrababu Naidu said. This government had taken up the responsibility of rebuilding the state, he said. He further added that it was the responsibility of the government employees to ensure that they supported the government.

He said that this government would respect the employees and take care of their welfare as well. He wanted the government employees to support this government. He asked them to work with commitment to deliver the services to the people. He called upon the government employees to work with this government and develop Andhra Pradesh.