Lok Sabha passes Bill to recognise Amaravati as Andhra Pradesh capital

New Delhi: Lok Sabha on Wednesday passed a Bill seeking to recognise Amaravati as the sole and permanent capital of Andhra Pradesh with effect from June 2, 2024.

Replying to the debate, Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai said the Bill aimed to give effect to an Andhra Pradesh Assembly resolution of March 28 requesting the Union government to incorporate Amaravati as the new capital of Andhra Pradesh.

He said it provides statutory clarity regarding the capital of Andhra Pradesh after its bifurcation in 2014. The Bill amends the Section 5 of the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act 2014, which had mandated that Hyderabad will remain the joint capital of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana for a period of 10 years after the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh.

Earlier initiating the debate, Congress Lok Sabha Whip Manickam Tagore said his party fully supports the Bill but demanded that special status be accorded to Andhra Pradesh, which is the successor state of the erstwhile undivided Andhra Pradesh following the creation of Telangana, as promised in Parliament.

"Let Amaravati develop like Bangalore, Chennai or Hyderabad. Let Vishakhapatnam, Tirupati, Kurnool also develop. We support Amaravati as the permanent capital of Andhra Pradesh," he said.

BJP MP CM Ramesh said this is the first time in the history of independent India that a Bill has been brought to Parliament to declare a particular place as the capital of a state.

"No one will be able to play" with the capital of Andhra Pradesh as Amaravati will be the sole and permanent capital of the state, he said, as he attacked the previous YSR Congress-led Andhra government that had made plans to have three capitals for the state.

YSR Congress floor leader PV Mithun Reddy said they oppose the Bill as it has no meaning unless the interests of the farmers are protected and a definite timeline is given for compensation to the farmers whose land has been acquired.

He said 34,000 acres were acquired by the state government for the development of Amaravati with the promise of giving free developed plots, housing scheme, free education for the children of the affected people. He defended the YSR Congress government's decision to develop three capitals, saying it was nothing new as there were many such examples globally.

The ruling TDP had been a vocal advocate of making Amaravati as the capital of Andhra Pradesh, while its predecessor YSR Congress had mooted the idea of three capitals – Visakhapatnam as executive capital, Kurnool as judicial capital and Amaravati as legislative capital – which did not cut much ice with the Union government.

The Bill amends the Section 5 of the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act 2014, which had mandated that Hyderabad will remain the joint capital of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana for a period of 10 years after the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh.

“...in sub-section (2), for the words ‘there shall be a new capital', the words ‘and Amaravati shall be the new capital' shall be substituted,” the Bill said. The Act makes it clear that Hyderabad will continue to be the capital of Telangana.

According to the Statement of Objects and Reasons of the Bill, the Andhra government after due consideration, consultation, and planning, identified and notified Amaravati as the new capital of that state.

“Significant administrative and legislative measures have been undertaken, besides the infrastructural developments in and around Amaravati, with the objective of establishing it as the capital of Andhra.