January 2026
In short: Andhra Pradesh polity & governance current affairs for January 2026.
Current Affairs — Andhra Pradesh › Polity & Governance · 14 min read · Free to read · English & Telugu
Bilingual study notes for the Andhra Pradesh Police SI & Constable exams (SLPRB AP) by AP Police Hub, a product of Anvil Academy.
Andhra Pradesh's January 2026 governance digest — five land categories removed from the Section 22-A prohibited list in the "Year of Land Reforms", a statewide awareness drive for Census 2027, a scientific SOP for de-silting urban drains before the monsoon, and Nara Lokesh's plan to make Mangalagiri a model constituency.
January 2026 — At a Glance
January 2026's governance story in Andhra Pradesh was about land justice, data readiness and preventive administration. The Revenue Department removed five categories of land from the prohibited list under Section 22-A of the Registration Act, declared 2026 the "Year of Land Reforms" and began distributing 21.8 lakh new pattadar passbooks. With Census 2027 ahead, the state launched a statewide public-awareness (IEC) drive and fixed its census administrative chain. Urban Local Bodies received a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for scientific de-siltation of drains before the monsoon, and Minister Nara Lokesh set out to make Mangalagiri a model assembly constituency.
1. Land Reforms — Five Categories Removed from the Section 22-A Prohibited List
Correcting the wrongful inclusion of private lands
- The decision — The AP government removed five categories of land from the prohibited list under Section 22-A, giving long-pending relief to farmers and landowners. It followed CM N. Chandrababu Naidu's directive to correct the wrongful inclusion of private lands and reform revenue administration.
- What Section 22-A does — Section 22-A of the Registration Act empowers the State to prohibit registration of certain categories of land to prevent illegal transfers. Over time genuine private lands were wrongly included, causing registration freezes, legal disputes and economic distress to farmers.
- Who led it — Implementation was led by Revenue Minister Anagani Satyaprasad.
The five categories removed from the prohibited list| No. | Category |
|---|
| 1 | Lands allotted to former & serving defence personnel |
| 2 | Lands granted to freedom fighters |
| 3 | Lands allotted to political victims |
| 4 | Assignments made prior to 18 June 1954 |
| 5 | Private patta lands |
- Partly disputed survey numbers — Where only part of a survey number is disputed, only the disputed portion stays prohibited after subdivision.
- Pending with a Group of Ministers — A Group of Ministers will decide on conditional patta lands, service inam lands, certain "dotted lands" re-included during re-surveys, and freehold lands (decision expected within two months).
- Single-document sufficiency — Any one of these is enough: old revenue registers, assignment records, Record of Holdings, registration documents or DKT pattas. Officials were told not to harass applicants.
- Technology — Resurvey of lands, digitisation of records, auto-mutation of pattadar passbooks, and Artificial Intelligence & Blockchain to prevent tampering and disputes.
- Collectors' powers — District Collectors are empowered to cancel fake registrations and prevent double registrations.
- Passbooks & the year's theme — 21.8 lakh new pattadar passbooks were to be distributed during Jan 1–9, 2026, and 2026 was declared the "Year of Land Reforms". An investigation into large-scale land irregularities under the previous regime was also announced, with zero tolerance for encroachments and fake registrations.
2. Census 2027 — Statewide Public Awareness Drive
Preparing citizens and officials for the first Census in 16 years
- What — AP launched a statewide public awareness campaign for the smooth and accurate conduct of the 2027 Census, stressing citizen participation, grassroots communication and administrative preparedness.
- Background — The last Census was held in 2011; Census 2027 comes after a 16-year gap. Its data will shape delimitation, welfare planning, fiscal transfers and governance reforms.
- Review — Chief Secretary K. Vijayanand reviewed preparations with District Collectors by video conference. The State Census Director is J. Nivas.
- IEC campaign — Special Information, Education and Communication (IEC) material will be prepared and circulated in all districts, explaining the importance, process and benefits of taking part.
Census 2027 — the two phases| Phase | Schedule |
|---|
| House Listing and Housing Census (HLO) | April 1 – September 30, 2026 |
| Population Enumeration (PE) | As per the Central schedule |
Census administrative chain in AP| Officer | Census role |
|---|
| District Collectors | Principal Census Officers |
| Municipal Commissioners | Census heads in corporations |
| RDOs, Tahsildars, BDOs | Charge Officers at mandal level |
- Legal basis — The exercise rests on gazette notifications issued by the Centre (June 16 and January 7).
- Field staff — Enumerators and supervisors will come from government employees, teachers, Ward & Swarna Gramam staff and local-body personnel, paid as per norms.
- Training — Training for Principal Census Officers and municipal commissioners is scheduled for the third week of February 2026.
- Departments — Industries & Commerce, Information & Public Relations, RTGS and State Services coordinate with district and local governments.
3. Urban Governance — Scientific SOP for De-Siltation of Drains
From ad hoc cleaning to planned, accountable drainage management
- What — The AP government approved and implemented an SOP for scientific de-siltation and safe cleaning of urban drains across all Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) ahead of the monsoon — to prevent flooding, improve sanitation and protect workers.
- The shift — Manual, irregular cleaning is replaced by planned, technology-driven maintenance; drain upkeep is treated as a core urban-infrastructure function, not routine sanitation.
- Lifecycle approach — Covers design and mapping, routine maintenance schedules, monitoring and reporting, and structural corrections to stop recurring blockages.
- Classification — Drains are classified as Minor, Medium, Major and Natural channels, each with separate, fixed cleaning schedules.
- Technology — A GIS-based digital inventory of all urban drains, digital monitoring, mechanised cleaning and outcome-based contracts.
- Safety & accountability — Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is mandatory; Municipal Commissioners are personally responsible for compliance; penalties for illegal dumping; and citizens take part in monitoring.
- Vision — Aligned with CM N. Chandrababu Naidu's vision of flood-free cities, preventive governance and climate-resilient urban infrastructure.
4. Constituency Development — Mangalagiri as a Model Constituency
Nara Lokesh's call for collective, people-centric development
- What — Education Minister Nara Lokesh announced plans to develop Mangalagiri Assembly Constituency as a model constituency, stressing collective effort, social responsibility and community participation.
- The occasion — He spoke at the installation ceremony of a Lutheran Church at Atmakur Parish, Mangalagiri, praising the community for rebuilding the church within a year; he also took part in ribbon cutting, plaque unveiling and tree plantation.
- Message to youth — He urged youth not to panic over failures, citing his own electoral defeat (2019) and comeback victory (2024) as a lesson in perseverance.
- Governance idea — The model-constituency concept shows decentralised development through leadership, citizen participation and institutional cooperation.