Be the change that you want to see. This has been Mr. Chowdary’s guiding principle that led to his relinquishing of all business responsibilities and commitments to enter public life. He was elected to the Rajya Sabha, representing Telugu Desam Party from Andhra Pradesh, in 2010.
Four years later, in 2014, during the first expansion of the Council of Ministers of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s NDA Government, Mr Chowdary’s expertise and knowledge in science and technology led to his appointment as the Minister of State for Science & Technology, & Earth Sciences. He was elected as the TDP’s Parliamentary Leader in the same year.
He has served in multiple parliamentary groups and committees. He was a member of the Indo-Singapore Parliamentary Friendship Group, jointly set up as a step towards strengthening bilateral ties between the two countries’ Parliaments. He was a member of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Commerce, the Parliamentary Forum on Youth, and the Consultative Committee for the Ministry of Food Processing Industries.
Besides taking up issues of concern related to his constituency Andhra Pradesh in the parliament, his humanitarian work on the ground has seen noticeable transformations in villages he adopted under the Sansad Adarsh Gram Yojana (SAGY), a comprehensive rural development programme launched by the Government of India in 2014. Under it, every Member of Parliament, irrespective of party affiliation, is obliged to adopt three villages and shoulder the responsibility of their physical, social, cultural, institutional, and infrastructural development.
He adopted the Villages of Ponnavaram, near Vijayawada, and Palaparru in the Guntur district, and has overseen constructive changes. The two villages have witnessed transformational changes in several areas, like education, healthcare, economy, among others.
By introducing digital learning in the classrooms and providing free Wi-Fi and books, quality education was made accessible to the villagers. Medical camps were arranged and drainage systems and toilets constructed to improve living standards and boost healthcare and sanitation.
These developmental works aligned with Mr. Chowdary’s belief that good quality education, healthcare and a clean environment are the three basic pillars for nation-building. Small, but constructive, steps in the right direction lead to big changes that transform nations and societies.