VIJAYAWADA: Aware of the possibility that the farmers could take legal recourse if it goes in for acquisition of land by invoking the Land Acquisition Act, the state government appears keen on invoking the Act and thus buy time, as it has no money to construct the greenfield capital of Amaravati on the banks of River Krishna river, according to CPM CRDA secretary Ch Babu Rao.
Speaking to newsmen here on Thursday, he said that the coffers of the government were near empty with the Centre having so far not honoured its commitment to fund construction of the capital. “The state has no money. Even the master plan for the seed capital is not complete in all respects. The CRDA office is yet to get data files from Singapore. Detailed designs have not yet been finalised. All these give room for suspicion that by invoking the Act, the state wants to delay the project,” he added.
He said whether or not the state wanted to delay the construction, his party was opposed to the forcible acquisition of 3,800 acres of land from the farmers not only in the seed capital area but also in villages outside it.
“We wonder why the government should go in for land outside the seed capital villages as its priority now is only to construct its administrative offices,” he added.
Rao said that moves were afoot to acquire farmers’ land in Undavalli, Penumaka, Nidamarru and Bethapudi, which were on the north and south sides of the seed capital.