Rs 4.5 lakh crores needed for Andhra Pradesh’s comprehensive development
Hyderabad: The Sivaramakrishnan committee indicated that Rs 4.5 lakh crore package is required for Andhra Pradesh’s comprehensive economic development based on the agreements contained in the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act (2014) and various statements made by the state government. Land acquisition has been identified as the biggest constraint.
The report said that the estimated investment potential in the two largest projects i.e. the Visakhapatnam-Chennai industrial corridor, which is expected to be part of the East Coast Industrial Corridor (ECIC); and the proposed IT Investment Region and Electronic Manufacturing Clusters will require extensive mobilisation of capital and private investor interest to be executed.
“It is clear from this very broad estimate, that there is a pressing need to develop considerable capacity to structure, manage and regulate PPP investments within the overall estimate for buildings for the Capital zone is about Rs. 10,500 crores,” said the report.
State government is assessing suitability of land assembly options to consolidate 1,458 acres of land (to be potentially scaled up to 5,000- 10,000 acres) for a new state capital in the Vijayawada- Guntur-Tenali- Mangalagiri (VGTM) region. Land assembly options being considered include Outright Acquisition; (PPP based Land Acquisition) and Land Pooling.
The DTCP (town and country planning department), GoAP recommended a PPP based land acquisition approach based on a comparative cost- benefit analyses of the three approaches.
The basic Land Acquisition process would take between 3 to 4 years to implement, without any administrative delays. The range of effective costs of land accruing to government range from 1.96 crores to 8.49 crores per acre (net developed area) indicating the need for a careful analysis before the choice of a greenfield site or areas where land prices are expected to be very high.
Existing real estate listings in the areas are already exhibiting a sharp spike in prices, which exceed land cost assumptions considered in the DTCP note. Land acquisition will soon become financially unfeasible along with associated difficulties in gathering consent and completing the acquisition.
Findings regarding Land Acquisition (including a land sharing PPP model of acquisition)
1) Time is the chief constraint. Land acquisition, using Land Acquisition, Resettlement and Rehabilitation act (LARR) will require minimum 3 to 4 years to be implemented, without project delays.
2) As the financial analysis highlights increase in the base market price of land, it would soon make the project unfeasible from cost perspective. Land acquisition may quickly become a very expensive option given that the base cost of land in the Vijayawada-Guntur area, which is already experiencing a hike.
3) Land consolidation at this scale has not been attempted successfully via LARR in the country yet. Delays and disputes that come up will have to be settled to satisfy the courts, which may result in project delays.
4) Along with considering the financial aspects, it would be necessary to consider the political feasibility of different levels of land sharing with the farmers/owners. The present estimate of giving landowners 36 per cent of net developed area back may be lower than the expectations of landowners.
Land Pooling findings
1) Land Pooling would require four years to be implemented, without project delays. However, unlike the Land Acquisition approach, land price increase will not directly increase costs for the GoAP
2) Land consolidation at this scale has not been attempted via land pooling yet.
3) Land pooling may provide GoAP with non- contiguous land, which may not be suitable for developing city level facilities.
4) It would be necessary to consider the feasibility of different levels of land sharing with the farmers/owners. The present estimate of giving landowners 24 per cent of net developed area back may be lower than the expectations of landowners.
However, land pooling potentially offers a more politically feasible alternative.
Panel suggests interim CM office at Gannavaram
Sivaramakrishnan Committee cautioned against shifting of interim capital offices to a specific location before deciding permanents location of capital. However the committee said Nuzvid, Gannavaram or Musunuru, if feasible, may be considered to locate CMs office and interim secretariat on a temporary basis in view of critical urgency.
The report said that an IT park building is lying unoccupied at Gannavaram. It is being considered whether the CMs office and the Secretariat could be located in the building on a temporary. It is also being said that other state government offices might also be shifted to that building temporarily.
The Committee suggests that only those departments, which are crucial to carry out urgent tasks of the state government, should be located here. The committee is against the idea of shifting all offices to this place, the report stated.
The requirement for permanent Chief Minister’s office, the ministers of Andhra Pradesh and Secretariat will require another 15 to 20 acres of land. This excludes the housing needed for secretarial staff, which is also important. It is seen that permanent Raj Bhawan Complex may need 15 acres of space. The AP Act says that Central assistance will be given for the creation of the Raj Bhavan and the Committee is of the view that the completion of the construction of the Raj Bhavan needs to be done strategically, recognising the symbolic value of the same
The State Legislature will require about 80 to 100 acres of land and the High Court complex, including the related judicial offices will require about 100 to 140 acres of land.
