Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Thursday met Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi. He reportedly sought special allocation for Andhra Pradesh in the 2024-25 budget by the Central government.
Naidu is understood to have requested the prime minister to give more funds for the state which is facing a severe financial crisis. He reportedly gave a detailed report on the state finances and sought the support of the Central government. He is understood to have told the prime minister that the present government would have to complete Amaravati capital city construction and the Polavaram project.
Amaravati would require Rs 58,000 crore to complete the first phase where the government buildings are expected to be completed. The MLAs, MLCs and senior government officers, non-gazetted officers and others residential quarters, the high court building, the Assembly and secretariat buildings are to be completed this time. They require huge amounts of money which the state government does not have. The chief minister is understood to have told the prime minister that a helping hand from the centre is a must to complete the project.
Similarly, in the Polavaram project, a second diaphragm wall is to be constructed which would cost around Rs 900 crore. The first diaphragm wall was damaged and international experts have recommended a second diaphragm wall to be constructed. The chief minister had requested the prime minister to give funds for the project.
The chief minister had also requested the prime minister to complete the Anantapur-Amaravati national highway project. The TDP government had proposed this project during 2014 and 2019. The project was almost cleared by the Central government. However, with the elections in 2019, the project was kept aside.
After the 2019 general election, the TDP lost the power and the project was kept aside. The successive YSR Congress government did not take interest in the project. It had secured clearance for the Bengaluru-Vijayawada national highway project. Chandrababu Naidu had reportedly requested the prime minister to revive the project and give money to complete it in the next four years.
Earlier in the day, Chandrababu Naidu met Union Minister Piyush Goel and other ministers, including finance minister Nirmala Sitaraman. Union Ministers K Rammohan Naidu, Pemmasani Chandrasekhar, Sriinivasa Varma, state ministers Payyavula Keshav, B C Janardhana Reddy and others were present during the chief minister’s tour in Delhi.
