VIJAYAWADA: Downscaling the previous TDP government’s ambitious Amaravati plan seems imminent as the YSRC dispensation wants to build a capital that not only caters to ‘local aspirations’, but also does not burden the State exchequer. Even as the Jagan government awaits the expert committee report to take a stand on the capital construction, sources said that several proposed projects are likely to be shelved.
Not just those in the pipeline, the government is also looking at downsizing a few of the projects that have not taken off. For the record, of the total 68 works with a total contractual value of Rs 35,847 crore awarded in the last five years, 21 have achieved less than one percent physical progress.
“Only 10 projects like buildings for officials and MLAs/MLCs, seed access road and Judicial Complex saw more than 50 percent progress. Most of the remaining, worth over Rs 12,000 crore, have achieved 0 to 1 per cent physical progress,” Municipal Administration and Urban Development Minister Botcha Satyanarayana told TNIE.
Botcha further added, “We are awaiting the report of the technical committee so that we will know how much corruption happened. Then, we will chalk out a strategy on capital development and the projects to be taken forward.”
However, sources confirmed that downscaling the project was definitely on the cards. “The TDP planned a Rs 1.09-lakh crore capital, which is half our State’s budget. Let us be practical. Do we need a city which would burden the State for generations to come? No. So, we will be pragmatic and do away with projects which are not needed,” a source in the know of things explained.
The State government will also release a white paper on Amaravati shortly. “A document has already been prepared and submitted to the government. It will be released after the conclusion of the Assembly session,” an official revealed.