The Andhra Pradesh high court has admitted a public interest litigation (PIL) from farmers of Amaravati seeking compensation from Andhra Pradesh Capital Development Authority (APCRDA) for not developing the plots allotted to them and not creating infrastructure for the capital as per the agreement.
The petition is expected to come up for hearing on Tuesday. According to this petition, the farmers demanded that APCRDA resume the developmental activities in Amaravati in accordance to the notified master plan for the capital city.
They demanded that the APCRDA be directed to develop the plots allotted them under land pooling scheme, besides completing trunk infrastructure expeditiously, and give them physical possession of the developed residential and commercial plots.
As per the agreement signed with the APCRDA, the farmers should be given physical possession of plots by February 2019, which means within three years of the notification of land pooling scheme. The non-allotment of plots would mean the government has violated the APCRDA Act.
Though TDP government led by N Chandrababu Naidu was in power in February this year, he did not complete the exercise. He apparently convinced them that the plots would be developed soon after the elections. But Naidu lost the power miserably in the elections.
With the Jagan Mohan Reddy government which took over in May 2019 dumping Amaravati and now, deciding to shift the capital to Visakhapatnam, the farmers are demanding that the APCRDA pay them compensation to them.
As per the agreement, the CRDA should pay compensation at the rate of Rs 10 per square yard for residential plot and Rs 20 per square yard for commercial plot every month with effect from February 22, 2019.
It would mean for a 1200 square yard residential plot, each farmer should be paid a compensation of Rs 12,000 per month and for a 400 sq yard commercial plot, another Rs 8,000 per month.
That would mean a huge amount for the government. It remains to be seen how the government will respond to this petition.