Chandrababu Naidu attacks YSRCP govt over Amaravati's development status, calls it Andhra's future

TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu on Thursday attacked the YSRCP government for stalling the development of the Amaravati capital area and said the city is the future of Andhra Pradesh.

In an exclusive chat with ANI, Naidu said he wanted to develop Amaravati on the lines of Hyderabad and to make it the state's financial hub.

"Telangana receives 56 per cent to 70 per cent revenue requirements from Hyderabad which was developed by me. With that experience, I planned Amaravati, a self-financed project. If it is completed, it will generate revenue and employment," Naidu said.

Naidu said that he wanted to develop all cities but the Jaganmohan Reddy government was "destroying" the state.

"We want to develop all the cities in the state... This man (Jaganmohan Reddy) has destroyed Amaravati and he is destroying the state. He only talks about schemes, from where he would get money for these schemes. There is a financial doldrum in Andhra Pradesh," he said.

Responding to the government's stand that Amaravati project was a financial burden on the state exchequer, he said: "If you invest money, you will get revenue. This is how the industry and cities are built. If I would have thought about Hyderabad in that way, Telangana would not get so much revenue."

On corruption allegations against him, the TDP chief threw a challenge to Jaganmohan Reddy. "He has completed six months in the office. Can he approve any corruption against me? I challenge him to do so. If he cannot, he has no right to level such allegations," he said.

Naidu is currently on a tour of the villages that constitute the capital region of Amaravati to review the status of constructions.

He parried a question on whether he would join hands with the BJP. "I want to pray to all leaders including the prime minister to continue these kinds of projects. Nobody should be allowed to destroy the future."

After coming to power, the YSRCP government has reportedly stopped construction activities at Amaravati for alleged corruption.

On Tuesday, Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy reviewed the status of construction and gave the go-ahead to the work that was halted. TDP claimed that this was a result of Chandrababu Naidu announcing that he would visit these sites.

Meanwhile, the state Municipal Administration and Urban Development Minister Botsa Satyanarayana compared Amaravati to a 'burial ground'. To this, Naidu said that the ruling party leaders were using filthy language.