SRIKAKULAM, May 6: BJP Andhra Pradesh State President PVN Madhav said on Tuesday that the Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya Prashikshan Maha Abhiyan — 2026, the party's state-wide training initiative, was aimed at transforming every worker from the polling booth level upwards into a capable and committed leader.

Madhav was speaking as the chief guest at a district-level training workshop held in Srikakulam as part of the campaign, which is being conducted across Andhra Pradesh. Addressing party leaders and workers, he elaborated on the party's founding principles, the philosophy of cultural nationalism, and the Antyodaya doctrine — the ideological commitment to the welfare of the last person in society.

"Workers are the primary strength of the party," he said. "Every worker must deeply understand the party's ideology and carry it to the people. Discipline, a spirit of service, and commitment are essential for the party's expansion from the village level to the national level."

Deendayal Upadhyaya's philosophy as guiding framework

Madhav invoked the teachings of Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya, observing that his vision of Antyodaya — upliftment of the weakest sections of society — remained the guiding framework for the party's work. He called upon workers to remain attentive to the problems faced by ordinary citizens and to stay committed to resolving them.

The training programme, he explained, was designed not merely to impart organisational skills but to cultivate leadership qualities among workers and build their capacity to face future challenges effectively.

Structured training across the state

The Prashikshan Maha Abhiyan has been structured to cover workers at multiple levels of the party hierarchy, with workshops being conducted district by district across the state. The Srikakulam session was attended by district party leaders, training coordinators, and a large number of workers who participated in sessions covering both ideological and organisational themes.

The campaign reflects the BJP's broader effort to consolidate its organisational base in Andhra Pradesh by investing in the capacity of its ground-level workforce ahead of future electoral contests.

AMARAVATI, April 20: A total of 377 doctors have joined primary health centres (PHCs) and teaching hospitals across Andhra Pradesh as Medical Officers and Civil Assistant Surgeons, with women accounting for 232 of the new recruits — or 61.53 per cent of the total intake — Health Minister Satya Kumar Yadav announced on Monday.

Of the newly joined doctors, 282 have taken charge as Medical Officers in PHCs while the remaining 95 have joined teaching hospitals as Civil Assistant Surgeons.

Recruitment process

The AP Medical Services Recruitment Board had issued a notification on behalf of the Director of Public Health to fill 630 Medical Officer posts on a permanent basis, against which 4,984 applications were received. Following scrutiny under prescribed rules, online counselling was conducted to fill 611 posts — excluding those reserved under the sports quota — from a finalised selection list. Of those called for counselling, 482 candidates registered their preferences.

234 posts to be filled shortly

However, 129 candidates did not exercise their options, and 105 others who received postings did not report for duty, leaving 234 posts vacant. The Director of Public Health has requested the Recruitment Board to furnish a fresh merit list of remaining eligible candidates from the original selection list drawn up under last year's notification. A revised list will be prepared in accordance with reservation rules and other applicable norms, and fresh online counselling will be conducted shortly. The coalition government has been taking continuous steps to ensure zero vacancy in public health posts, the Minister said.

District-wise distribution

Among the districts, Krishna, Nandyal, Palnadu, and Srikakulam recorded the highest intake, with 16 Medical Officers joining PHCs in each district. Kadapa, Eluru, and Konaseema districts saw 15, 14, and 13 doctors join respectively, while West Godavari, Alluri Sitarama Raju, Anantapur, and Prakasam each received 12 new PHC Medical Officers.

In teaching hospitals, Kadapa led with 25 Civil Assistant Surgeons reporting for duty, followed by Kakinada and Kurnool with 13 each. Across tribal areas of the State, 37 doctors have joined service.

AMARAVATI, April 14: A landmark research initiative to uncover the causes of chronic kidney disease (CKD) in the Uddanam region of Srikakulam district has gathered momentum, with a dedicated team now collecting blood and urine samples from local residents and deploying biomarker testing — a method being used in the area for the first time — to detect early signs of renal deterioration.

The research team briefed State Health Minister Satyakumar Yadav on the progress at a review meeting here on Monday.

A specialised laboratory, equipped with centrifuges, deep freezers, sample storage systems, analytical instruments, and field sampling kits, has been set up at King George Hospital (KGH) in Visakhapatnam at a cost of approximately ₹80 lakh. Samples collected from residents are first stored at a kidney research centre in Palasa before being transferred to the KGH facility under controlled conditions.

So far, blood and urine samples have been collected from around 1,500 residents through a special multi-disciplinary team. A structured questionnaire is also being administered to gather information on family medical history and other epidemiological factors.

Early detection through biomarkers

The principal investigators — Dr. G. Prasad, Professor of Nephrology at Andhra Medical College, and his mentor, senior nephrologist Professor Tatapudi Raviraju — said that biomarker testing of urine samples would make it possible to identify individuals likely to develop kidney disease within three to four years, at a micro level, well before clinical symptoms manifest.

"Mass biomarker screening of this nature for CKD patients is being undertaken for the first time," Dr. Raviraju said. The results, he added, would enable patients to take precautionary measures and allow clinicians to initiate early intervention, thereby preventing deterioration of kidney function. Genetic testing using RNA sequencing (RNAseq) will also form part of the research.

ICMR grant, research background

The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), under its Department of Health Research, approved a grant of ₹6.2 crore in November last year for a three-year study into the high prevalence of CKD in Uddanam. The approval followed sustained efforts by Health Minister Satyakumar Yadav to secure central support for the investigation.

The research was originally initiated during the previous Telugu Desam Party government (2014–19), when the George Institute for Global Health, Australia, was engaged as the research partner. However, the initiative was subsequently suspended during the YSRCP administration. The present alliance government revived the effort following its return to power.

The research team assured the Minister that the study is progressing according to a defined timeline and is expected to be completed within the stipulated three-year period.

Uddanam, a coastal belt spanning several mandals in Srikakulam district, has for decades reported disproportionately high rates of kidney failure, often affecting individuals in their productive years. The cause of the disease cluster has remained poorly understood, with hypotheses ranging from contaminated groundwater to pesticide exposure.

Amaravati, April 1, 2026: In a significant step towards strengthening the state's public health infrastructure, the Andhra Pradesh government on Wednesday issued appointment orders to 482 doctors on a regular basis through the Directorate of Public Health (DPH), with the entire recruitment and counselling process conducted paperlessly and transparently through an online platform.

State Health and Medical Minister Satya Kumar Yadav announced the development, stating that those who have received their posting orders must report to duty within 15 days.

Background to the Recruitment Drive

The appointments follow a notification (13/2025) issued last year for the filling of 636 posts, covering Medical Officers at Primary Health Centres (PHCs) and Tutors at teaching hospitals. The notification drew nearly 5,000 applications. After scrutinising applications based on MBBS qualifications and applying reservation norms and other prescribed rules, the recruitment board published its selected list on March 11. Subsequently, options were invited from eligible candidates from Monday morning (11 a.m.) through Tuesday night (9 p.m.) for 611 posts, excluding the sports category. The option window was extended beyond the originally announced deadline at the request of candidates.

A Shift Towards Digital Transparency

Marking a departure from the earlier practice of conducting counselling through Zoom conferences — where candidates selected postings based on vacancies displayed on screen — this cycle introduced a fully online counselling mechanism to enhance transparency. Candidates submitted their preferences in priority order against hospital-wise advertised posts, and posting orders were generated and issued entirely through the digital platform, without any physical documentation.

Director of Public Health Dr. Padmavathi confirmed that of the 611 posts notified, 482 candidates responded and were issued posting orders accordingly. She noted that a portion of the postings included Tutor positions at teaching hospitals.

District-wise Distribution

Kadapa district recorded the highest number of postings in the state with 52, followed by Anantapur (34), Srikakulam (31), Kakinada (29), Kurnool (27), Palnadu (26), NTR district (23), Nandyal (19), Krishna (19), Prakasam (17), Eluru (17), Vizianagaram (16), West Godavari (15), Guntur (14), Parvathipuram Manyam (14), Ambedkar Konaseema (13), Alluri Sitarama Raju (13), East Godavari (12), Visakhapatnam (12), Chittoor (12), Markapuram (11), Sathya Sai (11), Annamayya (10), and Nellore (10). Remaining districts received fewer than ten postings each.

Dr. Padmavathi added that the 19 posts reserved under the Sports and Ex-Servicemen categories would be filled shortly. It may be recalled that in December 2024, a separate DPH notification had resulted in posting orders for 392 medical officers.

Towards Strengthening Rural Healthcare

The fresh appointments are expected to address longstanding vacancies at PHCs across the state, where the shortage of doctors has been a persistent concern, particularly in remote and tribal areas. Health Minister Satya Kumar Yadav said the government remained committed to ensuring that quality healthcare reached every corner of Andhra Pradesh through timely recruitment and deployment of medical personnel.