Telugu Desam Party (TDP) victory breathes new life into Chandrababu Naidu's dream project Amaravati Capital city project, which was shelved by the outgoing YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) government. The return of Chandrababu Naidu to power has brought the spotlight back on Amaravati, giving new hope to farmers and others, who had been fighting for more than four years against the previous YSRCP government's move to shift the state capital.

Immediately after registering big victory, Chandrababu Naidu announced that Amaravathi will be the ‘Sole Capital” of AP, no “Three-Capital” games to continue. He made this announcement, addressing a joint meeting of TDP, BJP and Janasena legislators, where he was unanimously elected as NDA leader in the AP Legislative Assembly.

Plan for World-Class Capital City:

Chandrababu Naidu envisioned Amaravati on the banks of the Krishna River, near Vijayawada city as a dream capital and world-class city about a decade ago. However, their dreams were shattered after the previous YSRCP government announced that the administrative capital would be shifted to Visakhapatnam. At present, the landslide victory of the TDP-Jana Sena-BJP alliance and Chandrababu Naidu's announcement that Amaravati is the state capital has come as a big relief for farmers, who had given 33,000 acres of land for development of the state capital in the hope of a bright future.

Revival works launched even before the swearing in of the New Chief Minister. Authorities started laying the ground for the resumption of works on the Greenfield capital city after a gap of five years. Andhra Pradesh Capital Region Development Authority (APCRDA) has started clearing bushes and shrubs around important buildings in Amaravati to signal that the new government will go for a full-scale resumption of works. These changes have brought cheers to those waging a relentless fight to demand the development of Amaravati as the only state capital.

Real Boom…Surge in Land Prices:

TDP's return sparks a 40 to 50 % surge in land prices in Amaravati and its surrrounding areas. Relators also optimistic about future investments as key infrastructure projects are set to resume by newly elected government. The new government is likely to resume works from Uddandarayunipalem, the place where the foundation stone was laid in October 2015 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Chandrababu Naidu had got the master plan for Amaravati prepared by Singapore. With nine theme cities and 27 townships, it was planned in an area of 217 square km as a world-class city.

Designed not merely as an administrative capital but as an economic and job-creating hub and tourism center, it was planned to be developed in three phases -- seed area or core capital, capital city and capital region. Amaravati then attracted the attention of investors from countries like Australia, Japan, Germany, Singapore and Britain.

Chandrababu Naidu's grandiose plans to build the state capital require an estimated Rs 1.5 lakh crore. Works worth Rs 38,000 crore on projects like roads and state secretariat complex were launched in 2018.

Dec 17, 2019... A Dark Day for Amaravathi:

On December 17, 2023, protests by farmers and women of Amaravati completed four years. On December 17, 2019, that the then Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy announced in the state Assembly that three state capitals will be developed reversing the decision of the previous TDP government to develop Amaravati as the state capital. The government planned to develop Visakhapatnam as the administrative capital, Kurnool as the judicial capital and Amaravati only as a legislative capital.

Legal Hurdles… Amaravati Vs 3 –Capitals: 

Amaravati farmers were up in arms and legally challenged the move. Amaravati Parirakshana Samithi (APS), which is spearheading the movement against three capitals, undertook two padayatras during the last two years to mobilize public support for their demand.

On March 3, 2022, the Andhra Pradesh High Court directed the state government to develop Amaravati as the state capital in six months. In November 2022, the Supreme Court while hearing the Special Leave Petition filed by the state government, stayed the High Court's directions to develop infrastructure in Amaravati within a stipulated time frame. The Upper Court, however, did not stay the other part of the judgment, which had declared Amaravati as the state capital and that the law on three capitals was not valid.

YSRCP's crushing defeat in the 2024 elections and the return of TDP has raised new hope among the farmers and supporters of Amaravathi Capital.