The Andhra Pradesh government has already invited tenders worth sixty thousand crore rupees for works in the capital Amaravati. Gradually, the pace of work in Amaravati is increasing. Meanwhile, as this is going on, the government is now ready to acquire more than 16,000 acres of land for the second phase of the capital. There is also a possibility that this total may increase further in the future. In fact, it was originally proposed to pool nearly 44,000 acres in the second phase. Later, some changes were made to this plan. At this stage, YSRCP chief and former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy made sensational remarks on the capital Amaravati and the issue of second-phase land pooling. Jagan Mohan Reddy’s recent comments make it clear that he has not changed his opposing stand on Amaravati. Not only that, his demand that the Supreme Court should also take note of the fact that Amaravati constructions are now taking place in the river basin has become a major sensation.
At a time when the Andhra Pradesh government has stepped up efforts to give legal status to Amaravati through a legislative amendment in Parliament, Jagan’s remarks have gained significance. Jagan stated that carrying out land pooling again in the name of the second phase is a mad act by Chandrababu. He said that talking about a second phase even before completing the first phase of capital works is not appropriate at all. He criticized that even the farmers who gave land for the first phase of the capital are still facing many difficulties and that the government has not fulfilled the promises made to them. He alleged that Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu is acquiring additional land to loot through himself and his benamis. Jagan commented that wherever the Chief Minister works from, that becomes the capital, and that there is no concept of a capital at all in the Constitution.
He said that during the first phase of land pooling itself, it was stated that an expenditure of two crore rupees per acre would be required for basic infrastructure such as roads, drains, and electricity, and questioned where the one lakh crore rupees required for the 50,000 acres acquired in the first phase would come from. He remarked that it would have been better if the capital had been built between Vijayawada and Guntur. It is known that even before the first-phase capital took proper shape, the Andhra Pradesh government initiated second-phase land pooling citing reasons such as a greenfield international airport, sports city, and green industries. There are already many doubts among farmers regarding this. It remains to be seen how Amaravati farmers will respond to Jagan’s recent comments.
AP Municipal Administration Minister Narayana responded to Jagan’s criticism of the capital Amaravati. He said that if Jagan continues to speak like this, even those eleven seats will become zero in the next elections. He stated that the claim that the capital is being built in the river basin is mere propaganda. He questioned whether Jagan has forgotten that he spoke in favor of Amaravati as the capital on the floor of the Assembly. Narayana criticized that Jagan is speaking without any understanding of the capital master plan. He stated that as soon as the TDP returned to power, all the works that were sidelined during Jagan’s tenure were restarted.