BS Yeddyurappa takes capital cue from Jagan Mohan Reddy’s 3 Capital venture

Hyderabad: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, who has controversially proposed decentralisation of the administration by shifting some offices from Amaravati to other places in the state, can take heart from the Bharatiya Janata Party government in Karnataka doing much the same. It’s Chief Minister Yeddyurappa has decided to shift some important offices from Bengaluru to other places in the name of decentralisation.

With the BJP high command giving the green signal, the Karnataka Cabinet app-roved the shifting of some offices from Bengaluru to other places in the state.

When Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy announced that he would shift some offices from Amaravati to other places and have three capitals, the main opposition party, the Telugu Desam, and some BJP leaders in AP opposed the proposal, thinking that the BJP-led Central government would object to the proposal. But now with the Karnataka government doing likewise, YSR Congress leaders believe that the Centre will not voice any objection to the tri-capital proposal.

Karnataka minister Eshw-arappa recently told the media that the decision to shift some offices from Bengaluru to other places was taken in the interests of the people of north Karn-ataka as those offices would be accessible to the people of that region.

The Karnataka government will shift nine important offices from Bengaluru, including Krishna Bhagya Jala Nigam, Karnataka Neeravari Nigam, both under the Irrigation department, Powerloom Corporation, Sugar Directorate and Sugarcane Development Commissioner, Karnataka Human Rights Commission, and office of the Upa Lok-ayukta.

Mr Jagan Mohan Reddy had decided to locate the AP High Court and all judicial related offices in Kurnool, making it the ‘judicial capital’. The AP Secretariat and some other offices will be located in Visakhapatnam, making it the ‘executive capital’. Amaravati will remain the ‘legislative capital’ with the AP Assembly and the AP Legislative Council (which is going to be abandoned soon) located here.

Opposition parties say the need of the hour is not decentralisation of administration but decentralisation of development. The government’s argument is that through decentralisation of administration, decentralisation of development will take place.