The Chandrababu Naidu government has proposed to the Center to undertake metro rail projects in Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam. For these two metro projects, the state government has proposed to provide Rs. 42,362 crore at 2024 prices.
The government has estimated that Rs. 25,130 crore is required for the work of three corridors of the metro in Vijayawada in two phases. Rs. 17,232 crore is required for the work of four corridors of the metro in Visakhapatnam in two phases. According to the Andhra Pradesh Reorganization Act-2014, there is a proposal to take up metro rail projects in Andhra Pradesh. To this extent, the Center should provide funds for the construction of the metros.
Between 2014-19, the TDP government prepared a DPR for the establishment of metro rail projects in Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam and sent it to the Center. The Union Ministry of Urban Development and Housing has suggested that they be revised according to the new Metro Rail policy.
But later YS Jaganmohan Reddy’s government stalled the Metro Rail projects. It also cancelled the land acquisition proposals in Vijayawada and completely abandoned the project. It rushed the Metro Rail project work in Visakhapatnam before the general elections. But not a single step was taken.
As soon as the coalition government came to power, it got DPRs prepared within three months to start the Metro Rail projects in Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam. It proposed to the Center to provide Rs. 42,362 crore for the Metro projects in the two cities at 2024 prices.
As per AP Reorganization Act , the state government is required to bear Rs 2,799 crore for the acquisition of 258 acres of land in the two cities. However, as the state government is facing financial constraints and shortage of funds, it has requested that the entire cost of these projects be borne by the Centre.
To this end, it was mentioned that the Centre had allocated 100 percent funds for the Kolkata Metro Rail project in 2017. Recently, Minister Dr P. Narayana met Union Urban and Housing Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and raised the issue of metro projects. He asked that funds be provided to Andhra Pradesh on the Kolkata model. And how will the Centre respond? It remains to be seen when it will give the green signal to the metro.
