Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Friday greeted the tribal community on the occasion of World Tribal Day here and promised to empower them through development on fronts such as education and health.

The Chief Minister said his government will explore all possibilities to raise the income of tribal people. “On this World Tribal Day, I not only extend my greetings to all of you but with a definite plan, I will take the responsibility to develop tribal people,” said Naidu, addressing a large gathering at Tummalapalli Kalakshetram. Noting that the per capita income of tribal people in the state was only Rs 1.25 lakh per annum, the CM said the government would focus on this aspect to enhance it.

Assuring to promote tribal products, which include organic agricultural produce, Naidu said the state government will use the Centre's Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) platform for this purpose. He observed that ONDC can enable tribals from villages to directly sell their products to consumers in cities such as Bengaluru and Hyderabad. Referring to GI-tagged Araku coffee, cultivated in the southern state, the CM said steps would be taken to promote it. Pointing to the absence of proper infrastructure in tribal villages, Naidu said Rs 2,373 crore will be spent to supply tap water to over 16,000 tribal homes while roads will be laid in 2,191 hamlets without road connectivity. He also promised to build the necessary infrastructure for the community to get access to medical facilities.