Andhra Pradesh capital crisis: Deputy CM says no to Vijayawada, roots for Kurnool
Vijayawada is a congested area and doesn’t have government land within 10 km radius
By : DC Correspondent
Update: 2014-08-20 01:37 GMT
Hyderabad: Discontentment is brewing among ministers in the TD government and MPs over the hurry to crown Vijayawada as the capital. To counter it, proposals for other locations are being made.
Deputy Chief Minister and Revenue Minister K.E. Krishna Murthy ruled out Vijayawada as capital of Andhra Pradesh. “Vijayawada is a congested area and doesn’t have government land within 10 km radius. Whereas Kurnool has 5000 acre of land in a 10 km radius,” he said.
He, however, said that he was not demanding Kurnool as the capital and that the demand among the public for the capital in his town was also decreasing. He said that he would be happy if even half of the promises made by Chief Minister, Mr Chandrababu Naidu, for Kurnool were fulfilled.
“The capital should be in a central location and not in a corner of the state. The Sivaramakrishna Committee is yet to submit the report. Wherever the committee is visiting, people are asking for the capital. People in Srikakulam and Kadapa have been demanding the capital. Initially the focus should be on development. After focusing on smart cities and mega cities’ development, the capital should be decided in a central location. Otherwise the development will be focused at one place and other areas will be neglected. We need to take sufficient time and then decide on the capital,” said Mr Krishna Murthy.
He added, “Vijayawada was selected as the interim capital as it has several buildings which are ready to be occupied for the offices.”
He also expressed doubts whether the Sivaramakrishna Committee report would be taken into consideration while deciding the matter.
“When we look at the map, Vijayawada is centrally located. But it has no government land available. There is only 500 acre of government land between Vijayawada and Guntur. However, the proposed 60:40 rule while acquiring land may work out well for the farmers,” said Mr Krishna Murthy.
Meanwhile MP, Mr J.C. Diwakar Reddy, said, “Macharla is the ideal location for the capital. It has Nagarjuna Sagar water and is close to Hyderabad. There is a lot of government land available. The rocky terrain with hillocks resemble Jubilee and Banjara Hills. We can have four lane internal roads.”
He added, “Who will listen to me? No one will bother even if agitations are made. Only the rulers’ word will prevail and everything will be done according to their will.”