Right now, the anti-Capital shifting agitation is limited to the farmers in 29 villages who sacrificed their lands for Amaravati Capital construction. The farmers, agricultural workers and their families all are protesting on the streets for continuation of their Capital there. But there are no big protests outside Amaravati even in the twin Capital districts of Guntur and Krishna. Even Vijayawada, which is a politically sensitive town in entire state, is more or less silent going by its agitational track record.

The entire focus is now on Amaravati farmers. The ruling YCP Ministers and MLAs are saying that justice would be done to these farmers. Their plots would be fully developed as per the agreements reached with them under global city project. Can the ruling party Ministers be trusted? Is it possible to do justice to farmers at this stage? Farmers’ leaders say that concrete buildings and roads came up in their lands already. Jagan Reddy has not even any plan before him to resolve the tricky issue of returning plots to farmers. Amid this, leaders of other regions are demanding Jagan now to do justice to farmers before risking Capital shifting to Visakhapatnam. Ex Mp TG Venkatesh says that they would not like Amaravati farmers to suffer in any manner. Ex MLA Vishnukumar Raju asks YCP Circar how Vizagites can be happy with Capital when thousands of farmers lose their livelihoods in Amaravati. It is posing a bigger challenge for YCP to do justice to farmers.

As protests by Amaravati farmers intensified over the proposal for three capitals for Andhra Pradesh, Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy on Friday said that the rationale behind every decision is the welfare of all.

He said that the government takes decisions for the good of all sections of people and all regions of the state.

Jagan, as the Chief Minister is popularly known, was speaking at Eluru in West Godavari district after launch of Arogyasri, a healthcare scheme.

“From village to state administration, all are equal. Fruits of development and governance should reach all sections of people. We will correct the wrong decisions made in the past,” he said.

Jagan said he would use his position of the chief minister to make sure that people live in harmony and fruits of development reach all.

His remarks came amid continuing protests by farmers in Amaravati over the three capital proposal. Farmers, who gave 33,000 acres of land for development of Amaravati as the state capital in 2015, are demanding that the capital be retained in Amaravati.

Jagan has mooted the idea of developing Visakhapatnam as administrative capital and Kurnool as judicial capital. According to this proposal, only Assembly and Raj Bhavan will function in Amaravati.

Experts committee constituted by the state government has also made the same recommendation for decentralised development.

The government earlier this week set up a 16-member high-power committee to analyse the report of experts’ panel and take a final decision.

The farmers, who have been protesting for more than two weeks, say that shifting Secretariat and Chief Minister’s office to Visakhapatnam and High Court to Kurnool will spell doom for them.

Amaravati was the brainchild of Jagan’s predecessor N. Chandrababu Naidu, who had plans to build it as a world-class city.

YSR Congress Party (YSRCP), which came to power in May last year, alleged that the previous Telugu Desam Party (TDP) government resorted to insider trading and that it wanted to develop capital at Amaravati to benefit people of Kamma community, from which Naidu comes.

The TDP chief, however, has rubbished the allegations.

The Amaravati farmers’ protests are continuing for the 14th day today but there seems to be no hope of immediate relief from any side. The farmers are fast losing patience and threatening to take their agitation to any lengths against CM Jaganmohan Reddy’s Capital shifting plans. The Amaravati area voters are recalling how they were bluffed and cheated by the broken promises of CM Jagan Reddy. The farmers are saying that they wouldn’t have sacrificed their lands if Jagan Reddy did not speak naked lies on his support to Amaravati construction. Now, very cruelly, the YCP leaders are speaking as if the farmers gave lands out of their greed for quick and big money from high real estate values.

The farmers told Jana Senani Pawan Kalyan how Jaganmohan Reddy bluffed them into believing that the YCP government, if elected, would develop Amaravati better than the TDP. During his Padayatra also, Jagan made the local farmers believe in his support to Amaravati Capital. When Jagan held his electioneering in Capital villages, all YCP leaders spoke of continuing Capital City in Amaravati. The women voters recall how Vijayamma hugged and spoke sweetly with them to ask for One Chance to her son but she is not bothering about their problems now. The farmers are swearing to sacrifice their lives, if required, for the cause of fighting against Jagan Reddy’s Capital shifting plans. Nobody will believe any politician in future going by how Jagan Reddy is violating his own pro-Amaravati statement made in the Assembly as the Opposition leader during Chandrababu Regime.

The Andhra Pradesh government has constituted a high-power committee to examine the recommendations of the expert committee, which suggested three capital formula for the decentralised development of the state.

Two days after the state cabinet decided to form the high-power committee, the government on Sunday issued orders constituting a 16-member panel, comprising ministers and top officials.

Chief Secretary Nilam Sawhney, who will be the convenor of the high-power committee, issued the orders to this effect.

The panel will submit its report in three weeks. The members include 11 ministers and five officials, including Director General of Police and Principal Advisor to Chief Minister.

According to the Government Order (GO), high-power committee may seek the advice of the Advocate General.

It will also take into account the recommendations of the Boston Consultancy Group (BCG) while finalising the strategy and the way forward.

After six-member expert committee submitted its report on December 20, the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) government roped in the BCG to study the option available for the development of the capital city.

the BCG is likely to submit its report in the first week of January.

The state cabinet on Friday deferred a final decision on state capital and decided to constitute a high-power committee to study the reports of both the expert committee and the BCG.

It was in September that Jagan Mohan Reddy-led government had constituted a six-member expert committee on the concept of decentralised development and work out a strategy on the way forward, keeping in view various provisions of the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act.

The panel, comprising urban planning experts, suggested that three capital cities be developed by shifting some capital function from Amaravati to Visakhapatnam and Kurnool. It mooted Visakhapatnam as administrative capital and Kurnool as the judicial capital while Amaravti can house State Assembly and Raj Bhavan.

The report triggered unrest among farmers in 29 villages of Amaravati, who had given 33,000 acres of land in 2015 for development of the state capital. The farmers are staging daily protests, demanding the government to drop three-capital proposal and develop the capital in Amaravati as planned by the previous Telugu Desam Party (TDP) government.

The farmers have also approached the High Court, challenging the government’s proposed move.

The insider information from the ruling YCP leaders is surprising even the bitter critics of CM Jagan Reddy. The latest news is that the CM has deliberately decided to shift Capital just for the sake of his party’s votebank interests amid other things. Jagan does not want to spend thousands of crores on Amaravati as it would benefit only one particular caste but not his party. These caste people in Guntur and Krishna districts will not vote for the YCP even if it develops Capital. Andhra Jyothi Managing Director Radha Krishna talks about these issues in his latest Kothapaluku column. RK says that Jagan Reddy has told his close leaders that it would be a mere waste of time and energy to continue in Amaravati without any future benefits.

Whereas, Jagan Reddy considers North Coastal as a better proposition. The party could be further strengthened there. The people will also give greater support if Vizag is made Capital. RK writes that even the people in Nellore district are expressing impatience against the policies of YCP. The party has won 10 out of 10 assembly segments in the district in 2019 election. But, the Nellore Pedda Reddys are now saying that they should suffer like this because they have give total majority to Jagan Reddy very blindly. The Rayalaseema people are also not happy. RK says that they voted to give One Chance to YSR son but did not think Jagan would give such problems to all.

The farmers in Amaravati Capital villages are still seething with anger and continuing their protests on 11th day. They are disappointed that the Jagan Reddy Cabinet did not take reject the recommendations of the GN Rao Committee on Capital shifting. Moreover, there are increasing fears that CM Jaganmohan Reddy will be implementing his controversial ‘Three Capitals’ plan in January-end. The ruling Ministers are making stronger indications towards this end. Amid these concerns, the farmers are continuing their dharna camps in Tulluru, Mandadam and other villages. A good number of women are turning up and freely expressing their concerns at the protest programmes. Their main concern is that they will have nothing to pass on to their next generation if the government returns uncultivable lands back to them.

The police are trying hard to prevent dharnas in villages but residents are not relenting. Farmers and women are more aggressive than before. They are raising slogans demanding ‘Save Amaravati’ and ‘Save AP’. CPI leader K. Narayana, former minister Devineni Umamaheswara Rao and scores of opposition leaders have expressed their solidarity. The Amaravati Protection Committee and local villagers have decided to continue the protests till there is a clear statement from none other than Jagan Reddy withdrawing Capital shifting plans.