Chandrababu Naidu urges Centre to officially recognise Amaravati as Andhra capital

New Delhi/Amaravati, May 23 (IANS) Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Friday requested Union Home Minister Amit Shah to amend the AP Reorganisation Act and officially recognise Amaravati as the state capital.

During a meeting held by HM Amit Shah with 24 states on law and order, CM Naidu called for an amendment to the Act to designate Amaravati as the capital.

“The previous government’s ill-conceived three-capitals proposal played with the future of the people. At the request of local farmers, we asked the Centre to legally recognize Amaravati as the capital.”

On the first day of his two-day visit to the national capital, the Chief Minister met several Union Ministers to discuss state-specific projects.

He announced plans to establish electronics manufacturing industries in the Lepakshi–Orvakal region and requested the Centre to allocate aerospace projects to Andhra Pradesh.

Naidu told media persons that work on the Polavaram–Banakacharla link project would begin as soon as central approval is received, with a target to complete Polavaram by 2027.

He remarked that it would take a decade to undo the damage caused by the previous government and rebuild the state. The former regime left unpaid bills amounting to Rs 1.2 lakh crore, he said.

He claimed that the Centre responded positively to the state’s request for financial assistance.

The Chief Minister met Union Minister for Renewable Energy Pralhad Joshi and introduced the AP Integrated Clean Energy Policy. “Under this policy, the state aims to produce 72 GW of green energy. We requested a Rs 28,346 crore green energy corridor project, to which the minister responded positively.”

He also sought support for the Surya Ghar initiative, requesting solar rooftop facilities for 35 lakh households across the state—10,000 homes per constituency. The Centre has already approved 2,000 MW under the KUSUM scheme.

The Chief Minister stated that Andhra Pradesh is set to become a Green Energy Hub, enabling 24x7 power supply through renewable energy.

During the meeting with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, CM Naidu proposed converting 6,000 acres in the Jaggayyapeta–Dolakonda cluster into a missile and ammunition protection centre.

In the Sriharikota region, a 2,000-acre cluster is proposed for private satellite manufacturing and launch facilities. In the Lepakshi–Madakasira cluster, he proposed centres for military and civil aircraft, and electronics manufacturing. In Visakhapatnam–Anakapalli, naval experimentation hubs are planned, and in Kurnool–Orvakal, military drones, robotics, and advanced defence components manufacturing. He also proposed a DRDO Centre of Excellence at IIT Tirupati.

The Chief Minister reiterated that his government is committed to completing Polavaram by 2027 and dedicating it to the nation. He discussed the matter with Jal Shakti Minister C.R. Patil.

He stated that the Polavaram–Banakacharla link project, costing Rs 80,000 crore, will divert 200 TMC of water without affecting any other states. “Telangana too is building projects on the Godavari. Over the past 100 years, 2,000 TMC of water flowed into the sea. Our plan is to redirect 200 TMC of this surplus to drought-prone areas through this project, to be initiated upon central approval,” he said.

The CM met Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and explained the state's financial situation. He requested additional funding under the Purvodaya scheme and support for the Polavaram–Banakacharla project. The Finance Minister responded positively, he claimed.

--IANS

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