Green tribunal sword hangs on Andhra Pradesh's neck

Vijayawada: The AP government which is gearing up for a grand ceremony to mark the foundation stone laying of its capital Amaravati on October 22 has to pass the test of the National Green Tribunal on Saturday.

An interim stay against any construction in the capital region is in place according to petitioner P. Srimannarayana who had moved the SC on the matter. The case was handed over to the NGT and its ruling on PIL (171/2015) objecting to state capital being set up on fertile lands and in a flood-prone area will be delivered on October 10. It was actually scheduled for September 18 after receiving a counter affidavit from the CRDA commissioner. “When the stay is in place, the state government needs to stop all activity in the capital region including the stone laying ceremony, ” Mr Srimannarayana said.