Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam Metro Rail Project: The state has proposed to the central government to arrange ₹42,362 crores for the implementation of metro rail projects in Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam. It has estimated ₹25,130 crores for the Vijayawada metro and ₹17,232 crores for the Visakhapatnam metro. The state has requested that the central government provide funds for the construction of these projects as per the Reorganization Act. It stated that the state will bear the costs associated with land acquisition for the metro.
During the TDP government’s tenure from 2014 to 2019, efforts were made to establish metro rail projects in Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam. Comprehensive project reports were submitted to the central government for approval. The Ministry of Urban Development and Housing suggested that these be revised according to the new metro rail policy. However, the previous YSRCP government stalled the metro rail projects. It scrapped the land acquisition proposals in Vijayawada and completely shelved the project. Before the general elections, there was a rush to initiate the metro rail project work in Visakhapatnam, but no progress was made.
As soon as the coalition government came to power, it prepared Detailed Project Reports (DPRs) to commence the metro rail projects in Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam within three months. It proposed to the central government to arrange ₹42,362 crores for the metro projects in both cities at 2024 prices. It estimated that ₹25,130 crores would be needed for three corridors in two phases in Vijayawada, and ₹17,232 crores would be required for four corridors in two phases in Visakhapatnam. According to the 2014 AP Reorganization Act, the central government is requested to provide funds for the metro rail projects, while the state will bear the cost of ₹2,799 crores for acquiring a total of 258 acres of land in both cities.
Considering the financial constraints and lack of funds faced by the state government, it has requested that the total cost of the project be borne by the central government. The state Municipal Administration Minister Narayana mentioned last month in Delhi that the central government provided 100% funding for the construction of the East-West Metro rail project in Kolkata under the 2017 metro rail policy. He urged that Andhra Pradesh also be given funds based on the same model.
