Amaravati farmers set out on maha-padayatra 2.0 in Andhra Pradesh

The farmers and other locals of the 29 Amaravati villages have set out on another maha-padayatra in Andhra Pradesh, continuing their agitation against chief minister Jaganmohan Reddy's plan of constituting three capitals.

The Amaravati Parirakshana Samithi's maha-padayatra 2.0 slogan is "Build Amaravati-Save Andhra Pradesh." The march which began from the TTD-built Sri Venkateshwara Swamy temple at Venkatapalem on Monday would culminate at Arasavalli in AP's northernmost Srikakulam, famous for its temple dedicated to the Sun god, on 11 November.

600 Amaravati farmers – both men and women, donning green scarfs, accompanied a specially designed shrine-like chariot of Lord Venkateshwara.

The maha-padayatra 2.0 received the AP high court's nod last week, after the state police department declined to permit the walkathon planned to pass through the erstwhile Guntur, Krishna, East and West Godavari, Visakhapatnam, and Srikakulam districts.

With their foot march of two months, protestors hope to garner public support to their cause all along the way, like during their first 400 KM maha-padayatra, southwards to Tirupati, last year.

Monday marks the completion of 1000 days of the various forms of protests that began on 17 December 2019, when Reddy had first unveiled his controversial plan of three capitals in the state assembly.

Reddy's plan was to shift the executive to Visakhapatnam, and judiciary to Kurnool, while demoting the “mega, world-class capital” Amaravati, as envisioned by his predecessor Chandrababu Naidu, to just legislative capital.

The farmers of the Amaravati villages, who parted with their fertile lands abutting Krishna river in 2015 following the TDP government promise of developed plots and other benefits in the snazzy capital area, were appalled as the capital construction activity came to a grinding halt soon after YSRCP came to power in 2019.

Pressing on with their protests, the Amaravati locals, supported mainly by the TDP, had in December last year, took out a 400 km long padayatra till Tirupati named “Nyayasthanam (high court at Amaravati) to Devasthanam (temple town).” A public rally was also organized in Tirupati on 17 December to commemorate the completion of two years protest.

During the course of the Tirupati padayatra Reddy, on 22 November, withdrew the two contentious capital decentralization legislations under judicial scrutiny. However, the CM said the withdrawal was only to bring in more effective, inclusive laws.

Reddy's capital shift is on hold since August 2020 following directions of the Andhra Pradesh high court which is reviewing the petitions of farmers. Though the court had in March ordered the continuation of construction and development works in Amaravati capital city and region, the YSRCP government has reportedly made no perceivable progress.