Visakhapatnam will be capital soon, says Botsa

A native of Vizianagaram district, Botsa Satyanarayana has been the most influential leader in north coastal Andhra. He was minister in the two UPA governments and PCC chief for some time. He joined YSRC in 2015 and became minister in 2019 after the party came to power. He has been playing a key role in the party affairs of north Andhra and currently minister for education and incharge minister for Srikakulam district.

He was in the focus after chairing the first meeting of the non-political JAC spearheading the movement for decentralization and making Visakhapatnam the state’s administrative capital. In an interview to Deccan Chronicle, the minister spoke of the concept of decentralization, backwardness of north Andhra and the necessity of making Visakhapatnam the capital of Andhra Pradesh.

Excerpts from the interview:

Q. Senior political leaders have been saying that the ruling party should concentrate on completing the irrigation projects in Srikakulam and Vizianagaram that were pending for decades. How would a capital help?

A. We have completed 87 per cent of the Thotapalli project in Vizianagaram district during the tenure of former chief minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy. Work went on from 2004 to 2015. Chandrababu Naidu in his 2014-2019 term ignored the project. On the Vamsadhara, Jhanjavati and Thotapalli, we have minor issues with the Odisha government and these are being sorted. Our Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy visited Bhubaneswar to discuss such matters with his counterpart, Naveen Patnaik. By next general elections, we will be completing most of the works and also the Polavaram project.

Q. YSRC ministers and MLAs are backing JAC in its campaign for three capitals. What would be the next step after Visakha Garjana?

A. JAC has been formed with the single task of making people understand the necessity of the three capitals for balancing regional development. It will also mobilize the people in support of the movement. Garjana will be a statewide movement and an action plan will be announced soon.

Q. Visakhapatnam has developed on its own. What more do you want to develop when it becomes capital?

A. The chief minister has said with Rs 10,000 crore, Visakhapatnam could be developed like Mumbai. In fact, much less is required to add some basic infrastructure to serve the capital needs. Yes, it has grown on its own.

Q. When will you declare Vizag as Capital?

A. Very soon. The process has already begun and we have moved some offices to Kurnool. It will continue.

Q. When will the government place the three capital bills in the assembly?

A. The bill will be moved shortly, making some changes if necessary. Prior to that, we will sort out the legal hurdles associated with the decentralization bill.

Q. The party has been blaming Jana Sena chief Pawan Kalyan for planning Jana Vani, a peoples’ programme in Visakhapatnam coinciding with the Visakha Garjana and the following two days. How much harm would he do to the three capital concepts?

A. We don’t care much about Pawan Kalyan or his outfit Jana Sena. They have no ideology or principles with which a party can fight with us. We will achieve three-capitals and no political force can stop us from this.

Q. The land scam has been occupying the media space more than your campaign for three capitals?

A. I will not comment on the land scam right now. It might get mixed with the present programme of campaigning for three capitals.