Process on to make Capital Amaravati as biggest municipal corporation of AP

VIJAYAWADA: All is set for the start of the process to develop capital Amaravati into the Amaravati Capital City Municipal Corporation (ACCMC). This is to be done with the merger of 19 villages. Amaravati is currently a group of villages.

To start with, the government did a public opinion poll in the 19 villages of Thullur and Mangalagiri mandal to take people’s view on its development. The pro-Capital Amaravati supporters are severely opposing the move and said they would move court against the ACCMC plan.

It was after the YSR Congress won power in 2019 that the state government detached some Amaravati villages and formed the Mangalagiri Tadepalli Municipal Corporation by merging the Mangalagiri and Tadepalli municipalities. Now, the government is promising to form the biggest municipal corporation of AP by bringing under it 19 villages of Amaravati for their all-round development. All are not enthused, though.

The Kurgallu, Neerukonda and Krishnayapalem areas of Mangalagiri nandal will be merged into ACCMC. Similarly, 16 villages of Amaravati namely Thullur, Rayapudi, Dondapadu, Nelapadu, Sakhamuru, Inavolu, Ananthavaram, Nekkallu, Abbarajupalem, Borupalem, Mandadam, Malkapuram, Velagapudi, Venkatapalem, Uddandarayunipalem and Lingayapalem will be merged into ACCMC.

The Telugu Desam, during its rule, had constructed temple buildings for the Secretariat and Assembly at Velagapudi and temporary buildings for the AP High Court at Nelapadu. Barring the two villages, there was no proper development for the rest of Amaravati region. With the Three Capitals decision taken by the YSRC government, the development of Amaravati remained a mirage.

Further, the numerous cases seeking the continuation of Amaravati as the only Capital of AP also irked the government. Hence, it formed the Mangalagiri-Tadepalli Municipal Corporation but this was also objected to by the pro-Capital Amaravati people.

Now also, the pro-Amaravati leaders are severely objecting to the ACCMC.

Guntur district collector Vivek Yadav issued notification for conducting of Grama Sabhas to collect public opinion under which meetings started on Wednesday. Meetings were held in Neerukonda and Kuragallu where the people expressed their anguish over the merger of their villages into ACCMC and opposed the proposal.

There are chances of similar opposition being aired at the rest of the 16 villages in Thullur Mandal. A public hearing would be held from January 6 to 12.

Amaravati farmers' joint action committee convener Sudhakar said they are objecting to the ‘divide and rule’ strategy of the YSRC government. The government divided the villages into Mangalagiri-Tadepalli and Amaravati Corporations to weaken the Amaravati movement, he said.

He said Amaravati Capital was formed with 25 village panchayats. Hence they will not allow a division of villages for the Amaravati Corporation. Sudhakar and others said they will express their opinions at the public hearing programme against ACCMC and would move court seeking justice.