Capital will be located in Guntur dist HYDERABAD: It is official now. The new capital of Andhra Pradesh is coming up in Guntur district on the Vijayawada-Guntur stretch.
In order to fulfil the dream of AP Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu who wants to build a 'riverfront capital' for the truncated State, the Cabinet sub-committee on land pooling headed by Finance Minister Yanamala Ramakrishnudu, which met here, identified 17 villages in Tullur (14 villages) and Mangalagiri (three villages) mandals of Guntur district to locate the new capital city.
The government will procure 30,000 acres through land pooling system within 90-day period from all these villages, which are located on the banks of the Krishna.
'These 17 villages are in the south of Krishna river. We have chosen these villages to set up a riverfront capital. While procuring land, we will not disturb the houses in any village and nor alter the contours of any village. We will only take agricultural/vacant lands,' said Agriculture Minister P Pulla Rao.
Interestingly, the government's move to locate the capital in Guntur district came days after Naidu's announcement that new capital would come up in Guntur district and not in Krishna.
The State government took the decision undermining the open resistance being expressed by several farmers in Tullur and Mangalagiri mandals to take their lands for the capital. A majority of the farmers announced that they were not ready to surrender their land as they would lose livelihood.
'In order to persuade the local farmers to hand over their lands, our sub-committee will be touring the 17 villages in the first week of November. If the farmers cooperate with the government, they would be the ultimate beneficiaries as the capital would come right in their villages,' said Pulla Rao.
The government has also announced that it is annulling Vijayawada Guntur Tenali Mangalagiri Urban Development Authority (VGTM-UDA) henceforth to constitute Capital Region Development Authority.
News Posted: 31 October, 2014
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