Andhra CM’s 3-capital plan creates troubles for Vijayawada airport expansion

The determination of the YS Jagan Mohan Reddy authorities in Andhra Pradesh to create three capitals for the state with the executive capital being shifted from Amaravati to Visakhapatnam has created hurdles for enlargement of the Gannavaram airport close to Vijayawada.

Hundreds of farmers, who had given away round 1229 acres of land to the state authorities in 2016 beneath land pooling scheme (LPS) for the enlargement of the airport by the Airport Authority of India, are actually refusing to maneuver out except the federal government pays them an enormous compensation.

During the Telugu Desam Party’s reign, these farmers, belonging to Ajjampudi, Allapuram, Atkuru, Buddhavaram, Chinavutapalli, Kesrapalli and Gannavaram had been allotted residential and industrial plots of the scale 1,000 sq. yards and 200 sq yards respectively within the capital area of Amaravati in lieu of the lands that they had surrendered to the federal government for the airport enlargement.

They signed an settlement with the then AP Capital Region Development Authority to that impact and had been allotted plots in several localities of Amaravati in 2018, as per the grasp plan.

However, with the Jagan Mohan Reddy authorities dumping the Amaravati capital metropolis mission and deciding to go in for the three- capital plan, the farmers of Gannavaram airport area are left within the lurch.

A farmer from Buddhavaram village, who didn’t need to be named, mentioned the farmers had been allotted plots in Amaravati solely on paper, however had not been given possession of the websites, as the event of Amaravati was nonetheless in progress.

“Now that the present government has abandoned the capital plan at Amaravati, our plots have no value there. We want our lands back or be paid compensation as per the law,” he mentioned.

Those who surrendered lands to the state authorities additionally embrace excessive profile folks like former Union minister and senior BJP chief U V Krishnam Raju and standard Telugu movie producer C Ashwini Dutt, who had purchased agriculture lands and developed farm homes and orchards.

On Monday, Ashwini Dutt filed a petition within the state excessive courtroom searching for a route to the state authorities to pay compensation of Rs 210 crore in direction of 39.15 acres of land he had surrendered to the federal government at Kesrapalli village for the Gannavaram airport enlargement.

He mentioned his land was positioned in a main industrial space across the airport and the registration worth of the land is round Rs 1.25 crore to Rs 1.50 crore per acre. He demanded that the federal government pay 4 occasions the worth of the land as compensation earlier than taking possession of the land for the airport.

“As per the clause in the agreement signed with the APCRDA, we have the right to claim compensation and damages if the APCRDA breaches the agreement. Now that APCRDA has been abolished and construction of the capital city is abandoned, there is no hope for development of Amaravati, where we were allotted plots. So, we are constrained to invoke the clause and seek damages,” Dutt mentioned in his petition.

Meanwhile, Krishnam Raju additionally filed the same petition within the excessive courtroom searching for satisfactory financial compensation for his 31 acres of land at Kesrapalli, which he had surrendered to the federal government for airport enlargement.