Andhra CM Naidu to meet PM Modi, invite him for Rs 65,000-crore Amaravati city groundbreaking ceremony

New Delhi: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu is scheduled to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on Friday to invite him for the groundbreaking ceremony of the renewed Rs 65,000-crore Amaravati capital city project to be held on May 2.

After a period of stalled progress between 2019 and 2024, Naidu has revived the Amaravati city project -- the new capital of Andhra Pradesh on the banks of Krishna River -- after returning to power in the state in 2024.

"The chief minister is meeting the prime minister post lunch to invite him for the groundbreaking ceremony of the renewed Amaravati city project," an official source said.

Naidu aims to build a world-class, inclusive and modern urban hub inspired by global cities such as Amsterdam, Singapore, and Tokyo, sources said.

Amaravati was designated as the new capital of Andhra Pradesh following the state's bifurcation in 2014.

The Amaravati Master Plan, crafted by the UK-based firm Foster and Partners, envisions comprehensive development over a 217.23 sq km area between Vijayawada and Guntur towns.

The city is envisioned to be an economic hub for the region and is expected to create 1.5 million jobs, house 3.5 million people, and have a GDP of $35 billion by 2050.

Officials said the estimated budget for Amaravati's development works as arrived in 2024 was about Rs 64,910 crore, with Phase-1 of the project to be completed over the next three years.

Of the project cost, the government of India committed Rs 15,000 crore financial assistance in 2024 and facilitated World Bank and Asian Development Bank support to the tune of $800 million each.

The Andhra Pradesh Capital Region Development Authority (APCRDA) is designing massive branding programmes to attract anchor investors and private sector participation for economic development.

Public-private partnership (PPP) projects are being promoted, and a special purpose vehicle (SPV) is envisioned to meet viability gap funding.