Telugu Desam Party president and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu released a white paper on the status of Amaravati capital city on Wednesday, but did not clarify how he plans to raise funds for its reconstruction.
The white paper, presented to the media as a power-point presentation, focused on how the previous government had disrupted the development of Amaravati by proposing three capitals, and it detailed the current status of the structures in the capital city.
However, even when discussing the way forward for Amaravati, Naidu did not address how he would revive the plan.
He claimed that he would rebuild Amaravati from its current state of disrepair and transform it into a world-class capital city that would enhance the state's image and boost public confidence.
Naidu expressed regret that the state still lacks a proper capital city even after ten years of its formation.
“The investors who were ready to invest in Amaravati have lost their confidence. The brand image of Andhra Pradesh has suffered,” he said.
He stated that he would resume work on Amaravati from the point where it halted five years ago.
“We need to restart construction activities and engage with Singapore and other countries to implement the master plan. We have to restore investor confidence, rebuild the brand image, and revive the economy. That is the only way forward,” the chief minister said.
Naidu provided a detailed explanation of how the Amaravati capital city project took shape during his previous term.
“Singapore prepared the master plan free of cost, and international funding agencies like the World Bank, AIIB, JICA, and KfW supported the project. National funding agencies like HUDCO and PSU banks also extended financial assistance,” he said.
For the Amaravati government complex (AGC), which includes state-of-the-art buildings for the state legislature, high court, and secretariat, the government engaged Norman and Foster Consortium of the UK as the Master Architect for the designs.
Out of the total cost of Rs 51,687 crore, tenders were called for works worth Rs 41,170.78 crore and they were initiated. An amount of Rs 4,318.67 crore was paid to the contractors, and another Rs 1,268.81 crore was pending when the government changed in May 2019, he said.
During the five-year tenure of the Jagan government, Naidu stated that Amaravati experienced systematic destruction. Unfinished buildings and roads were damaged due to prolonged exposure to the elements. There was theft of materials, gravel, and iron left on the roads. Property prices depreciated sharply, wealth generation did not occur, and there was large-scale migration of people to other states due to lack of work in Amaravati, he lamented.