VIJAYAWADA: Former minister Vadde Sobhanadreeswara Rao has found fault with the Capital Region Development Authority ’s (CRDA) proposed Inner Ring Road (IRR) plan with commercial corridors on both sides, which requires 16,566 acres of land.Addressing mediapersons here on Monday, he asked how could the cash-strapped State government pay compensation to farmers, as it has to acquire the required land for the IRR under the Land Acquisition Act-2013.
“As per the Act, the State government has to pay 2 to 4 times the market value of the land, which at present costs anywhere between Rs 75 lakh and Rs 6 crore per acre. The cost of land acquisition will run into several thousands of crores. Given the precarious financial position, is it necessary for the government to take up such an ambitious project?,” he said. Explaining his objections over the IRR plan for Amaravati, which were submitted to the CRDA (objections can be submitted to the CRDA by March 18), he asked what is the necessity of having 96-km long and 75-metres (244 feet) wide eight-lane IRR with four-lane service road in Amaravati.
He said Chennai, which has 80 lakh population, has just 100 feet six-lane inner road while Bengaluru, which has over 80 lakh population, also has 100 feet 6-lane inner ring road. Rao demanded that the government take up the Vijayawada Bypass Road plan, for which the cost would be borne by the Centre as it is part of the National Highways. He called upon farmers to strive for protecting their rights taking inspiration from Maharashtra farmers, who took out a huge rally for their rights in Mumbai.