HUDCO sanctions Rs.7,500 cr for building new AP capital Amaravati

Sanction of a loan of Rs.7,500 crore by HUDCO and Centre's keenness to support the State build Amaravati will make the new capital of Andhra Pradesh a world-class city, Union Minister for Urban Development M. Venkaiah Naidu announced here on Monday.

Addressing delegates on the second day of Partnership Summit during a discussion on 'Sunrise AP: Turning aspirations into reality--Vision 2029,' he said that HUDCO signed an expression interest to provide loan to make Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu's dream of developing Amaravati as one of the best cities in the world.

Describing the loss of Hyderabad for which Mr. Chandrababu Naidu played key role in making it a leading IT destination during his tenure as Chief Minister during mid-1990s, the Union Minister said that AP had several inherent strengths to become



a hot favourite for investors.

"It has 1,000 km of National Highway, nearly 1,000 km of railway lanes and 974-long coastline, second largest after Gujarat. More important, the people of AP are known for their entrepreneurship world-over," he stated.

Mr. Venkaiah Naidu said Prime Minister Narendra Modi was firm on supporting the 'visionary' Chief Minister in translating his vision into a reality in every possible manner.

He said that the Centre was seriously considering sanctioning Metro Rail for Vizag and Vijayawada-Amaravati region. He said the Centre would consider the Chief Minister's request to consider development of Amaravati as a smart city.

The Centre had sanctioned smart city projects for Vizag, Kakinada and Tirupati for which Rs.100 crore each would be released towards seed money.