Capital to be set up at Vijayawada

* House adjourned thrice

Bulldozing the Opposition's demand for a debate before choosing the site for the Andhra Pradesh capital, Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu has announced that some place near Vijayawada would be the capital of the state.

He also said the government would set up a cabinet sub-committee for land pooling. He also said that three mega cities and 14 smart cities would be developed.

Though he had said that there would be decentralised development of the whole state, Chandrababu Naidu did not spell out anything about how the decentralisation would take place. No road map has been unveiled.
However, the government has clearly given a go by to the convention that a decision has to be preceded by through debate in the house. The TDP it appears, has given in to the powerful realty lobby, which has invested heavily on land in and around Vijayawada.

The TDP has been giving enough indications that a decision on the capital would be taken regardless of the recommendations of the Sivaramkrishnan Committee. What forced the TDP government's hand is the fear that Modi government could accept the recommendations of the committee leaving little elbow space for the state government. Chandrababu, who had initially said that he would make the announcement by 12 noon, has advanced it and made the announcement by 11.11 AM, which was decided by pundits as being auspicious.

Practically, the government has left barely two-and-a-half hours for debate on the all-important issue. The YSRCP has strongly demanded that there should be a thorough debate on the issue. The Government, which clearly wanted to skirt a discussion, has ensured that the opposition was denied an opportunity to voice its opinions.