Andhra invites consultants for Amaravati plan

THe Andhra Pradesh regime has decided to go in for an structured masterplan for the Amaravati working capital metropolis throw, in view of the expansion of the capital region by going in for second phase of land pooling from farmers.On Thursday, the Andhra Pradesh capital region development authority (APCRDA), which oversees the capital city development projects, invited tenders for engagement of consultants for integrated masterplan.According to the tender notification, the integrated masterplan includes infrastructure planning, financial planning and detailed land pooling area planning in the capital region.“The bids from reputed consultancy firms to design the integrated masterplan can submit their bids up to February 6. The technical bids will be opened on the same day at 4 pm,” the notification said.The decision to have an integrated masterplan for the capital city was taken following the decision of the state government in November to expand the capital city region for providing additional capital infrastructure, including the proposed railway station, sports city, airport, smart city, and the inner ring road.In the first phase of land pooling system (LPS) for Amaravati capital city in 2015, the then TDP government acquired 34,385 acres of land from 28,526 farmers in 29 villages. Now, the government has decided to acquire 16,666.57 acres under land pooling system, besides another 3,300-odd acres of assigned government lands, taking the total extent intended for acquisition in the second phase to 20,494 acres.The APCRDA has identified seven villages where land pooling and acquisition is being done: Vaikunthapuram: 3,361 acres; Pedamadduru: 1,145 acres; Endroyi: 2,166 acres; Karlapudi: 2,944 acres; Vaddamanu: 1,913 acres; Harishchandrapuram: 2,418 acres; and Pedaparimi: 6,513 acres.“The present masterplan covers only 217 square kilometres of area of the capital city. Now that the government is going in for additional land acquisition, the masterplan has to be redesigned with an integrated one,” an official from the state municipal administration and urban development department said.The masterplan for Amaravati phase-I was prepared by Singaporean government-owned consultancy company Surbana Jurong Private Limited, which does infrastructure and urban development projects across the world.“For designing the integrated masterplan, we have invited global consultancy firms. Even Surbana Jurong is keen on participating in the bidding process,” the official said.For Phase-I, Surbana Jurong had prepared a comprehensive spatial plan, detailing zoning and land use, and an infrastructure development plan, outlining roads, utilities, and civic amenities.“The consultancy firm for the integrated masterplan will not only take up updated spatial and infrastructure plans but also draft a financial plan, factoring in long-term economic viability and phased investments,” the official said.Taking all these proposed developments into account, APCRDA aims to finalise a comprehensive and forward-looking master plan for Amaravati, aligning urban growth with infrastructure, economic planning, and future expansion requirements, the official added.