CRDA Approves Amaravati Projects Worth ₹8,821 Crore in 42nd Meeting

The 42nd meeting of the Capital Region Development Authority (CRDA), chaired by Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, took place on Tuesday. The Municipal and Urban Development Minister, Ponguru Narayana, announced that the authority approved development works in Amaravati amounting to ₹8,821.44 crore.

In a press briefing, Minister Narayana detailed the decisions made during the meeting. He revealed that between 2014 and 2019, tenders were issued for projects worth ₹41,000 crore, of which works valued at ₹5,000 crore were completed. The latest approvals include ₹3,807 crore for roads in land pooling areas, ₹4,521 crore for trunk roads, and ₹492 crore for quarters for judges and ministers.

Minister Narayana also mentioned that in the previous CRDA meeting, works worth ₹11,471 crore were approved, bringing the total approval across the two meetings to ₹20,292.46 crore. The approved projects cover 236 kilometers of roads and layouts in villages such as Nelapadu, Rayapudi, Ananthavaram, and Dondapadu. Out of the planned 360 kilometers of trunk roads, 97.5 kilometers received clearance in this session.

The Minister highlighted that delays in project execution led to increased costs. He estimated a 25-28% rise in road construction costs and a 35-55% increase in building expenses. He stated that continuing with Amaravati as the capital could have reduced these additional costs by 45%. The introduction of an extra 6% GST has further escalated expenses.

Minister Narayana announced that tenders for the approved works would be issued by December 15 and finalized by the end of the month.