Amaravati

Amaravati
City

The Dhyana Buddha statue at Amaravathi Temple town, 35 km (22 mi) west of Amaravati
Amaravati
Amaravati

Location of Amaravati in Andhra Pradesh, India

Coordinates: 16°32′28″N 80°30′54″E / 16.541°N 80.515°E / 16.541; 80.515Coordinates: 16°32′28″N 80°30′54″E / 16.541°N 80.515°E / 16.541; 80.515
Country India
State Andhra Pradesh
Districts Guntur
Founded by Vasireddy Venkatadri Naidu (18th century),[1]
Nara Chandrababu Naidu[2] (planned capital - 2014)
Government
 • Type Planning Agencies
 • Body Amaravati Development Corporation Limited, APCRDA
Area[3]
 • City 217.23 km2 (83.87 sq mi)
 • Metro[4] 8,352.69 km2 (3,224.99 sq mi)
Population (2011)[5]
 • City 103,000
 • Metro[6] 5.8 million
Time zone IST (UTC+5:30)
Pincode(s) 520 xxx, 521 xxx, 522 xxx
Area code(s) Telephone numbers in India
Vehicle registration AP-07
Official languages Telugu
Website Amaravati official website

Amaravati is the de facto capital city of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh.[7] The planned city is located on the southern banks of the Krishna river in Guntur district, within the Andhra Pradesh Capital Region.[3][8][9] The word "Amaravati" derives its name from the historical Amaravathi Temple town, the ancient capital of the Telugu Rulers of the Satavahana dynasty.[10] The foundation stone was laid on 22 October 2015, at Uddandarayunipalem area by the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi.[11] The metropolitan area of Guntur and Vijayawada are the major conurbations of Amaravati.[12]

Etymology


The word Amaravati translates as the place for immortals.[10][13]

History

The present capital area has its own historical significance of having recorded its first ever legislation 2,200 years ago.[14] As per the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act (2014), Hyderabad became the capital of the then newly formed state of Telangana, post bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh. However, Hyderabad would remain as the joint capital of both states for a period of time not exceeding ten years. Hence, Amaravati is thus being built to serve as the capital of Andhra Pradesh.[15]

Foundation

The foundation for the city was laid at Uddandarayunipalem on 22 October 2015. The Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi; the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, N. Chandrababu Naidu; the Chief Minister of Telangana, Kalvakuntla Chandrashekar Rao; the Japanese minister for economy trade and industry, Yosuke Takagi; and the Singaporean Minister for Trade and Industry, S. Iswaran laid the foundation for the city.[11][16]

The region was founded by Vasireddy Venkatadri Naidu, who was the first king to have built a planned city in southern India.[1]

De facto state capital

As of October 2016, the majority of departments and officials of the Andhra Pradesh State Government are now functioning from interim facilities located in the Velagapudi area of Amaravati, with only a skeleton staff remaining behind in Hyderabad.[17] The Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, N Chandrababu Naidu began working from Velagapudi in April 2016. The Andhra Pradesh Legislature remained in Hyderbad until March 2017, when it relocated to newly constructed interim legislative buildings in Velagapudi.[18]

Geography

The city is being built in Guntur district, on the banks of the Krishna River. The city will be 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) south-west of Vijayawada and 24 kilometres (15 mi) north of Guntur.[19]

Governance

Map showing Amaravati in Andhra Pradesh Capital Region, spread across Guntur and Krishna districts

Administration

Amaravati is an Urban Notified Area and its urban development and planning activities are undertaken by the Amaravati Development Corporation Limited[20] and Andhra Pradesh Capital Region Development Authority (APCRDA).[21] The Andhra Pradesh Secretariat at Velagapudi is the administrative block for the employees of the state government.[22]

Jurisdiction

The APCRDA has its jurisdiction over the city and its the conurbation covering Andhra Pradesh Capital Region.[23] The capital city is spread over an area of 217.23 km2 (83.87 sq mi),[24] and will comprise villages (including some hamlets) from three mandals viz., Mangalagiri, Thullur and Tadepalle.[25] While, the seed capital is spread over an area of 16.94 km2 (6.54 sq mi).[26]

The table below lists the denotified villages and hamlets under their respective mandals, which became a part of the capital city.[3]

Mandal name Settlements
Thullur mandal Abbarajupalem, Ainavolu, Ananthavaram, Borupalem, Dondapadu, Kondarajupalem (de-populated), Lingayapalem (including Modugulankapalem hamlets), Malkapuram, Mandadam (Tallayapalem hamlets), Nekkallu, Nelapadu, Pitchikalapalem, Rayapudi, Sakhamuru, Thulluru, Uddandarayunipalem, Velagapudi, Venkatapalem
Mangalagiri mandal Krishnayapalem, Nidamarru, Kuragallu (including
Nerukonda hamlets), Nowlur (including
Yerrabalem &
Bethapudi hamlets)
Tadepalle mandal Penumaka, Tadepalle (M) (Part)
(Nulakapet, Dolas Nagar etc.), Undavalli

Note:

Economy

Mangalagiri Sarees and Fabrics produced in Mangalagiri mandal,[27] a part of the state capital, were registered as one of the geographical indications from Andhra Pradesh.[28] HCL Technologies, an IT firm would set up one of its centres in Amaravati.[29][30]

Education

Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT-AP) is the first university to set up its campus in Amaravati.[31] SRM University,[32] Amrita University, Amity and Indo-UK Institute of Health (IUIH) in collaboration with the King’s College, London are among the others to set up their campus.[33][34][35][36]

Transport

A Road Roller working on an arterial road in Amaravati

The buses operated by APSRTC from Pandit Nehru Bus Station and NTR bus station, connects the city with Vijayawada and Guntur respectively.[37][38] Two new depots, North and South of APSRTC are proposed to be constructed in the city.[39] Auto rickshaws also operate for shorter distances in the capital city area.[40] A proposed Amaravati highspeed circular railway line would connect the city with the nearby cities of Vijayawada, Guntur and Tenali,[41] extending up to a length of 105 km (65 mi) with an estimated cost of ₹100 billion (US$1.6 billion).[42]

A view of Seed Access Road

The Amaravati–Anantapur Expressway, supported by Kurnool and Kadapa Feeder Roads is an ongoing greenfield expressway project, which would provide faster road access from the districts of Anantapur, Guntur, Kadapa, Kurnool and Prakasam to Amaravati.[43][44] The Amaravati seed capital road is an arterial road under construction to access the core capital area from National Highway 16.[45] The Vijayawada-Amaravati road connect the city with Vijayawada.[46] The Vijayawada International Airport at Gannavaram provides air connectivity to destinations of the country.[47]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "This Raja knows how to hold the fort – Times of India". The Times of India.
  2. ↑ "Chandrababu Naidu performs bhoomi pooja for new capital city of Amaravati". The Hindu Business Line: Mobile Edition. 6 June 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 "Declaration of A.P. Capital City Area–Revised orders" (PDF). Andhra Nation. Municipal Administration and Urban Development Department. 22 September 2015. Retrieved 21 February 2016.
  4. ↑ Subba Rao, GVR (23 September 2015). "Capital region expands as CRDA redraws boundaries". The Hindu. Vijayawada. Retrieved 31 October 2015.
  5. ↑ "CRDA eyes CSR funds to push job potential in capital city". Times of India. Guntur. 1 July 2015. Retrieved 18 August 2015.
  6. ↑ "Amaravathi to be divided into eight urban plan areas". The Hindu. 3 April 2015. Retrieved 21 June 2016.
  7. ↑ Akbar, Syed (8 Aug 2016). "Amaravati as official capital will boost Andhra Pradesh's image – Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 1 May 2017.
  8. ↑ "Naming of the Residuary Andhra Pradesh State Capital as "AMARAVATI"" (PDF). Andhra Nation. Municipal Administration and Urban Development Department. 23 April 2015. Retrieved 1 May 2016.
  9. ↑ "Amaravati: A capital idea, but how feasible?".
  10. 1 2 "After 18 centuries, Amaravati set to become a 'capital' again". The Times of India. 22 October 2015.
  11. 1 2 "Thousands descend on Andhra village Uddandarayunipalem to watch history in making", Economic Times, 22 October 2015
  12. ↑ "Explained: Why Amaravati has been chosen as the new Andhra Pradesh capital". The Indian Express. 21 October 2015.
  13. ↑ Ravikumar, Aruna (13 August 2016). "A river of talent". The Hans India. Retrieved 1 May 2017.
  14. ↑ "After 2,200 years, Amaravati gets back its legislation power – Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 1 May 2017.
  15. ↑ "The Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014" (PDF). AP Reorganisation Portal. New Delhi: The Gazette of India Extraordinary. 1 March 2014. Retrieved 9 February 2015.
  16. ↑ "Andhra CM scales down Amaravathi foundation fete".
  17. ↑ "Andhra Pradesh Secretariat starts functioning from interim government complex at Amaravati – Latest News & Updates at Daily News & Analysis". 3 October 2016.
  18. ↑ http://www.news18.com/news/india/andhra-pradesh-holds-maiden-budget-session-in-new-capital-amaravati-1356763.htmly
  19. ↑ U Sudhakar Reddy (31 October 2014). "Andhra Pradesh capital to come up on riverfront in Guntur district". Deccan Chronicle. Hyderabad. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
  20. ↑ "ADCL :: Amaravati Development Corporation Ltd.". ccdmc.co.in. Retrieved 6 August 2017.
  21. ↑ "New Andhra capital Amaravati to compete for Smart City tag". The New Indian Express. 25 May 2016. Retrieved 6 June 2016.
  22. ↑ "CM inaugurates AP’s interim secretariat". The Hindu. 26 April 2016. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 14 May 2016.
  23. ↑ "AP Capital Region Development Authority comes into being". The Hindu. Hyderabad. 31 December 2014. Retrieved 6 January 2015.
  24. ↑ "How Andhra Pradesh plans to make its new capital Amaravati a world-class city".
  25. ↑ "A.P. Capital Region" (PDF). APCRDA. Government of Andhra Pradesh. p. 15. Retrieved 1 September 2016.
  26. ↑ "Economic Development Board Andhra Pradesh – Amaravati – The People's Capital". apedb.gov.in. Retrieved 3 May 2017.
  27. ↑ "Geographical Indication". The Hans India. 23 January 2016. Retrieved 15 May 2017.
  28. ↑ "Mangalagiri Cotton Saree | Textiles Committee (Ministry of Textiles, Government of India)". www.textilescommittee.gov.in. Retrieved 2017-02-24.
  29. ↑ "HCL to set up IT centres in Amaravati, Vijayawada". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 2017-04-03.
  30. ↑ "HCL to set up IT centres in Amaravati, Vijayawada.". -Avenue Realty. 2017-03-31. Retrieved 2017-04-03.
  31. ↑ "http://www.vit.ac.in/ap". VIT University. Retrieved 2017-02-27. External link in |title= (help)
  32. ↑ "SRM University, AP – Amaravati". www.srmuniv.ac.in. Retrieved 2017-02-27.
  33. ↑ "Amity, SRM, VIT get nod to set up campuses in Andhra Pradesh | Press Room". mysrm.srmuniv.ac.in. Retrieved 2017-02-27.
  34. ↑ "Amity University to set up campus in Amaravati | AP State Portal". www.ap.gov.in. Retrieved 2017-02-27.
  35. ↑ "Amrita University to Set Up Medical University at Amaravati, Andhra Pradesh | Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham (Amrita University)". www.amrita.edu. Retrieved 2017-02-27.
  36. ↑ "IN THE PRESS | IUIH". www.iuih.co.uk. Retrieved 2017-02-27.
  37. ↑ "Work at new Secretariat from June 27". The Hans India. Retrieved 3 May 2017.
  38. ↑ "Facelift to Guntur bus stand" (PDF). p. 2. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
  39. ↑ "APSRTC cuts losses by Rs. 116 crore".
  40. ↑ "Thullur- Vijayawada waterway a welcome convenience". The Hans India. Retrieved 2 June 2017.
  41. ↑ "DPR being prepared for high-speed train to Amaravati". Retrieved 15 May 2017.
  42. ↑ Reporter, Staff. "Circular rail line for Amaravati approved". The Hindu. Retrieved 11 January 2017.
  43. ↑ "In a big infra boost, Centre to fund Rs 29,000 crore Andhra expressway – Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 2 June 2017.
  44. ↑ "List of National Highways passing through A.P. State". Roads and Buildings Department. Government of Andhra Pradesh. Retrieved 11 February 2016.
  45. ↑ "AP CM to take part in Iftar party". The Hans India. 22 June 2016. Retrieved 29 June 2016.
  46. ↑ "Four-lane road to Andhra Pradesh new capital soon". The Hindu. Guntur. 6 August 2015. Retrieved 4 June 2016.
  47. ↑ "Gannavaram Airport to be named as Amaravati airport". The Hindu. Retrieved 12 January 2017.
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