Visakhapatnam: Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy on Wednesday announced that he would start governance from Visakhapatnam in September this year.
“This is part of the decentralisation process that has approval from the entire people of Andhra Pradesh,” the Chief Minister stated after laying the foundation stone for the Mulapeta port and three other projects in Srikakulam district. A large number of people attended the event braving the heatwave conditions.
Jagan Mohan Reddy said Srikakulam district has a coastline of 193 km out of AP’s 974-km sea-face but no previous government had ever thought of constructing a port or fishing harbour. This was so even as thousands of fisherfolk families had to go outside the state to eke out a living.
“The port, a modern fishing harbour, will change the face of Srikakulam. This place can emerge as a big city like Mumbai or Chennai, which developed in leaps and bounds over the years due principally to the presence of ports,’’ Jagan Mohan Reddy said.
Stating that the port will be a game changer, the Chief Minister said, “The Mulapeta Port being built at a cost of ₹ 4,362 crore will have four berths with a capacity to handle 24 million tonnes of cargo. The project employing 35,000 people directly or indirectly will be completed in 24 months,” he said.
Jagan Mohan Reddy said the port would be connected to the Howrah – Chennai main rail line with an 11-km road and linked to the National Highway 14 km away from the port.
Announcing that the district would also have two fishing harbours, the Chief Minister said the foundation stone was laid for the ₹ 365 crore fishing harbour at Budagatlapalem. This apart, the fish-landing centre at Manhineellpeta, constructed at a cost of ₹ 12 crore, would be upgraded as a fishing harbour with a fund of ₹ 85 crore.
Pointing out that only six ports were built during the last 75 years, Jagan Mohan Reddy said his government was developing four ports and 10 fishing harbours in 46 months. Three fish-landing centres were also being developed. “After the commissioning of the port and the fishing harbours, fishermen need not go to Gujarat or elsewhere to seek employment,” he said.
“The government is also focusing on irrigation and drinking water projects, keeping in mind the interests of the farmers,” he said.
The Chief Minister laid the foundation stone for the Lift Irrigation project that would fill Hiramandalam reservoir with 19tmc-ft of water. With this, the ayacut will be stabilised, supplying water for two crops in several parts of the district.
Similarly, stone was also laid for the offshore reservoir of Mahendratanaya with a promised fund of ₹ 400 crore. The work began during the Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy term but could not be completed by YSR’s successor Chandrababu Naidu, Jagan Mohan Reddy said.
Among the other projects, the work on Neradi Barrage would also begin. “I had held talks with Odisha Chief Minister Navin Patnaik two years ago and we are sorting out the pending issues,” the CM said.
Jagan Mohan Reddy said he would inaugurate the Kidney Research Centre at Palasa in June this year and a ₹ 700 crore water project that would bring surface water from Hiramanadalam to Palasa and Tekkali villages for the benefit of kidney patients.
Announcing some more projects for north coastal Andhra Pradesh, the Chief Minister said construction works on the Tribal Engineering College at Kurupam in Manyam district, the medical colleges at Paderu in ASR district as also Narsipatnam and Vizianagaram districts, were going on in full swing.
The CM said he would lay the foundation stone for the Tribal University in Salur in Manyam district this June.
This apart, “I would lay the foundation for the biggest project of north Andhra, the Bhogapuram International Airport in Vizianagaram district, on May 3,” Jagan Mohan Reddy said.
He said a six-lane road project worth ₹ 6,200 crore, linking the airport, will also be launched. On the same day, the foundation stone would be laid for the Adani Data Centre in Visakhapatnam.
