VIJAYAWADA: The Second phase of land pooling has formally commenced for several major projects in the capital region.
Farmers in Vaddamanu and Endroyi villages welcomed Municipal Administration and Urban Development (MA&UD) Minister Ponguru Narayana with great enthusiasm during his visit, accompanied by MLAs Shravan Kumar and Bhashyam Praveen.
Narayana inaugurated Land Pooling Competent Authority offices in the villages and held meetings with farmers.
Several farmers submitted Form-1 agreements, expressing their willingness to give their lands for pooling.
In Endroyi alone, farmers handed over 400 acres in a single day. The Minister announced that, following the Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu’s directive, farmer families newly contributing land under pooling will receive loan waivers up to Rs 1.5 lakh.
He added that the Chief Minister has also agreed in principle to revise lease rates in line with current market needs.
As part of Amaravati’s expansion, land pooling is being initiated for projects including the Inner Ring Road, International Sports City, and railway infrastructure.
The government has decided to acquire 16,666.57 acres across seven revenue villages in Amaravati and Thulluru mandals, with cabinet approval already secured.
In Vaddamanu, the Minister inaugurated the Competent Authority office, performed special pujas, and collected consent forms from farmers.
He noted that 1,768 acres will be pooled in the village. He acknowledged delays under the previous government but assured that the Amaravati works are now progressing rapidly.
The Minister highlighted that projects worth Rs 55,000 crore are currently underway, including the construction of 4,026 housing units, roads, and infrastructure facilities. He promised completion within three years.
Farmers requested faster development of returnable plots, to which the Minister agreed, assuring that two rows of roads would be built first to enable transactions.
Later in Endroyi, Narayana launched pooling alongside CRDA Commissioner Kannababu and Palnadu District Collector Kritika Shukla. Out of 1,925 acres planned, farmers offered 400 acres on day one.
The Minister thanked them for their cooperation and announced that the International Sports City master plan will be completed within three months, with construction beginning in a year. He assured farmers that the promised development will be delivered.