Andhra Pradesh: Amaravati Capital’s Halted Construction Works to Restart

Vijayawada: The Andhra Pradesh government is giving top priority to the erection of facilities for state capital Amaravati and would get a team of IIT engineers to determine the strength of the structures that were left unfinished there in recent years.

The apartments for legislators, officers, NGOs, bungalows for principal secretaries and secretaries, the judicial complex buildings and other structures in Amaravati were at various stages of construction.

Due to a change in policy and priorities of the previous government, all the building works had been halted. The inundation of foundations apart, the steel reinforcement, exposed to the elements, has been damaged as the works were halted without providing protective cover. The project sites have turned into ‘jungles’. The APCRDA recently carried out jungle clearance works.

APCRDA officials said 17 works were taken up in Amaravati's capital at an estimated cost of Rs 9,617.21 crore, which later rose to Rs 1,958.37 crore. The physical progress of the works varies from 6 per cent to 80 per cent for various projects. The expenditure incurred on the construction of the 17 projects was Rs 1,531.37 crore.

The work on AP Legislative Assembly Complex, with a budget of Rs 555.00 crore, has not been started.

Officials said the works on apartments for legislators and officers in Amaravati were started with a Rs 700 crore budget. Some 80 per cent of the works were completed. The works on apartments for NGOs were started with a budget of Rs 1,355.39 crore. These were completed by 62 per cent. The works on apartments for government officials of Type I, II and Group D started with a budget of Rs 975.34 crore and these are complete by 66 per cent.

The works on bungalows for principal secretaries and secretaries were started with an outlay of Rs 274.50 crore. Some 28.5 per cent of the works were completed. The works on bungalows for ministers and judges with a budget of Rs 235.50 crore were completed by 27.3 per cent. The works on Judicial Complex - Phase I, costing Rs 115.33 crore, were completed by 95 per cent. The Judicial Complex - Phase II, with a fund of Rs 64.00 crore, is complete by 85 per cent.

The Advocates Block with a Rs 23.15 crore budget saw only 5 per cent of the work done. The works on Amaravati CRDA Project Office Phase I, with an outlay of Rs 30 crore, were completed by 77 per cent. The Project Office – Phase II, with a budget of Rs 39 crore is complete by 77 per cent.

The works on the AP high court with a budget of Rs 860.00 crore were completed by 13 per cent. The works on GAD Tower, with an outlay of Rs 662.00 crore, were completed by 19 per cent. The Amaravati Government Complex (AGC) works started with a budget of Rs 1556 crore and saw only 6 per cent completion.

The Amaravati Tower 1 & 2 with Rs 1,107.00 crore was completed by 18 per cent. The Amaravati Tower 3 & 4 with an outlay of Rs 934 crore was completed by 20 per cent.

The APCRDA started the “Happy Nest” Project in Amaravati on a space of 14.46 acres in the Nelapadu village. It consisted of 12 towers with 1200 flats. The sale of the plots was through online on first-cum-first- served basis and 1187 flats were booked in two phases instantly.

Tenders were called in December 2018 at an estimated cost of Rs 720.5 crore and an execution period of 2 years. The expected profit was Rs 57.37 crore. The works were completed by 25 per cent only. Contract with the Shapporji Pallonji and Co was terminated. The flat owners have approached RERA and filed around 83 petitions. Some 177 customers have cancelled the allotment and sought a refund of the booking advance. Now, the project cost, calculated as per the present rate, is Rs 885 crore.

Urban development minister Ponguru Narayana has said the AP government would conduct a study with IIT engineers to ascertain the strength of the construction-halted structures in Amaravati. It has also been decided to entrust IIT Chennai with the responsibility of ensuring the foundation strength of the Amaravati Iconic Buildings.

He said the government would hand over the responsibility of ensuring the strength of the buildings for the public representatives, officers and employees to IIT Hyderabad. “We would proceed to restart the construction based on reports given by the IITs,” he said.