In a significant move on the eve of Good Friday, the Andhra Pradesh government released ₹30 crore to pay honorariums to Christian pastors across the state. The Minorities Welfare Department issued a Government Order on Thursday, April 17, authorizing payment of monthly stipends to 8,427 pastors for a seven-month period from May 2024 to November 2024.
Each pastor will receive a monthly honorarium of ₹5,000, amounting to ₹35,000 in total for the seven-month period. Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu gave approval for releasing the funds, which will be disbursed directly into pastors’ bank accounts through the Andhra Pradesh State Christian (Minorities) Finance Corporation.
The Commissioner of Minorities Welfare has been authorized to draw and disburse the amount to the Managing Director of the A.P. State Christian (Minorities) Finance Corporation for further distribution.
The TDP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government, which includes the BJP and Jana Sena, had promised during last year’s election campaign that welfare schemes for minorities, including honorarium for pastors, would continue under their administration.
M. Joseph Emmanuel, TDP State Executive Secretary and former Christian Corporation Chairman, confirmed that the pending dues have been deposited into the pastors’ accounts. He connected the fulfillment of this promise to a commitment made by IT Minister Nara Lokesh during his Yuvagalam walkathon.
“AP IT Minister Nara Lokesh had promised this during the Yuvagalam walkathon, and today he fulfilled that promise by ensuring the pastors’ dues were cleared,” Emmanuel said at a press conference held at TDP headquarters.
The National Christian Council had previously thanked Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu in December last year for confirming the resumption of honorarium payments to pastors. The Council noted that the Christian community had long awaited this development, along with the continuation of the subsidy scheme for pilgrimage to Jerusalem.
Minister for Law and Minority Welfare N. Md. Farooq reaffirmed the government’s commitment to minority welfare and stated that the release of funds ahead of Good Friday on April 18 was being widely welcomed.
The honorarium scheme for pastors was initially launched in 2019 by the previous YSR Congress Party government led by Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, fulfilling a promise made during their election campaign. The current administration’s move represents a continuation of this policy.
Emmanuel criticized the previous YSRCP government, claiming that Jagan Mohan Reddy had used “Christians as a vote bank” while neglecting their properties, schemes, and institutional development during his tenure. He stated that Naidu had earlier allocated ₹100 crore for the Christian Corporation and proposed several welfare programs aimed at supporting pastors and Christian community institutions.
According to Emmanuel, the Christian community building project, which was sanctioned with ₹10 crore under the previous TDP government but allegedly halted under YSRCP rule, has now been revived with construction already resuming.
Other welfare programs mentioned by Emmanuel included ₹50,000 in marriage assistance for 5,000 poor Christians and ₹40,000 in pilgrimage support, which he claimed were discontinued during Reddy’s administration.
The government’s move has not been without criticism. Praja Shanti Party President KA Paul questioned the timing of the announcement, asking, “You declared this on Good Friday, promising to give ₹5,000 per month to over 8,000 pastors. Why was this honorarium not provided earlier? Why now?”
Paul further alleged that this might be an attempt to silence Christian voices, particularly following what he referred to as the murder of Pastor Praveen Pagadala, which he claimed had mobilized millions of Christians, Hindus, and Muslims. He also expressed concern that only 8,000 pastors were selected for the scheme, asking, “What about the remaining 80,000 pastors?”
The Andhra Pradesh government has been implementing similar honorarium schemes for religious functionaries across faiths. Minister Farooq recently announced that the government had completed the disbursement of honorarium to imams and muezzins for six months, releasing ₹45 crore for this purpose. The state government has been paying honorariums to Archakas or priests of Hindu temples, as well as to imams, muezzins, and pastors.
In the same announcement, Minister Farooq also revealed that the government has increased the monthly honorarium for Special Judicial Magistrates (Class-2) from ₹30,000 to ₹45,000, with an additional ₹5,000 allocated for transportation expenses, applicable retrospectively from April 1, 2019.
The TDP leader stated that the coalition government in Andhra Pradesh is working to complete earlier commitments and infrastructure projects that were allegedly stopped or neglected by the previous regime.
