CPI(M) opposes second phase of land pooling for Amaravati
The CPI(M) has opposed the government's decision to acquire an additional 44,000 acres of land for the development of the capital city of Amaravati.
In a statement on Wednesday, CPI(M) State secretary V. Srinivasa Rao said the government should withdraw this decision, calling it 'unnecessary, harmful, and driven by real estate interests' rather than genuine developmental needs.
Even after pooling 34,000 acres of land 11 years ago, the capital construction remained incomplete. Without utilising the already acquired land effectively, planning a second phase of land pooling only added to the woes of the farmers and the poor, who had surrendered their lands with the hope of better opportunities, he said.
Seeking to know the rationale behind constructing a new greenfield airport in Amaravati when an operational airport already existed at Gannavaram, Mr. Srinivasa Rao said, 'This is not for development, but to serve real estate interests.'
Instead of acquiring more land, the focus should be on improving existing infrastructure and ensuring the proper implementation of planned projects in the newly developed urban zones, he said.
Highlighting the unused land bank already with the Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (APIIC), he pointed out that despite having one lakh acres in reserve, not a single new industry had been established. 'This proves the government's failure to decentralise industrial development across the State,' he said.
The Central and State governments had collectively failed to develop the Amaravati capital as promised in the A.P. Reorganisation Act. It accused the Centre of neglecting its responsibility to provide funds and blamed successive State governments for initiating grandiose but unfulfilled projects.
'After years of instability and suffering, the residents of Amaravati should not be subjected to further uncertainty,' he said, adding the government failed to provide basic amenities, promised plots, employment, and welfare benefits such as free education and healthcare to those who gave up their lands in the first phase.
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