VIJAYAWADA: Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has asserted that the Capital Region Development Authority (CRDA) will encompass 8,352 sq km as per the GO No. 207 issued in 2015.
He chaired the 36th CRDA meeting at the State Secretariat on Friday, and reviewed 12 key issues, including the allotment of land to 130 organisations and their current status. He emphasised that land should be allotted to those who are genuinely interested in establishing their organisations within a stipulated time-frame. Naidu directed officials to proceed with the construction of the inner ring road, and the widening of Karakatta Road into a four-lane one.
Speaking to mediapersons after the meeting, Minister for Municipal Administration and Urban Development (MAUD) P Narayana announced that the annuity and pensions for farmers who handed over their farmlands for the development of Amaravati Capital City in land pooling, will be extended for another five years. He recalled that the farmers handed over 34,000 acres of farmland in just 58 days without any litigation, trusting Naidu.
The MAUD Minister revealed that the CRDA will be restored to its original area of 8,352.69 sq km, instead of the reduced 6,993.24 sq km by the previous YSRC regime. Palnadu and Bapatla authorities will continue to function under the CRDA limits.
Mentioning the staff issue, he said the number of employees working in the CRDA has come down to 249 now from 778. The CRDA has decided to reinstate all the employees who worked on deputation, outsourcing, contract and direct recruits. Additionally, out of 47 consultants, 32 will be reappointed as the work of 15 consultants has been completed, he said.
The previous regime had altered the capital city limits, reducing it from 217 sq km by excluding 54 sq km from four villages, and merging them into the Mangalagiri Municipal Corporation. Now, the CRDA has decided to reclaim the 54 sq km to restore the capital city area to 217 sq km.
Regarding infrastructure, he said the agreement with the Singapore government for constructing the seed capital, which was cancelled by the previous regime, will be reconsidered.
The CRDA will construct six iconic bridges across the Krishna river and take up development of the inner ring road, outer ring road and western bypass road, in addition to the eastern bypass, which will be completed soon.
Discussions on the R5 zone, which is currently under the court purview, will continue, and a legal study will be conducted. The 217 sq km capital city will be divided into nine parts for the development of nine cities, aiming to connect Amaravati, Guntur, Tadepalli, Mangalagiri and Vijayawada into a mega city over the next 25 to 50 years. The Happy Nest project will also be resumed and tenders will be invited soon, he said.
A team of experts from IIT Hyderabad inspected the residential complexes for MLAs and MLCs in Amaravati.
Subrahmanyam, an expert, said, “It will take some more time to determine the strength of the buildings. The current condition of the buildings, the impact of standing rainwater, and the up-to-date condition of construction materials should be assessed.”
He further said they will submit a report to the government after examining the building complexes technically. “It is not clear how long it will take. However, we will submit the report to the government at the earliest,” he added.