Those who wish to get marooned amidst the verdant valleys of Eastern Ghats and shut off from the rest of the world, this neighbourhood beckons.
But to reach this destination that houses three colonies – Annamaraju Nagar, Andhra University Teachers’ Layout and D.R.K. Raju Township – in Madhurawada, located near Kommadhi junction, one has to navigate through several bumpy, muddy, and narrow roads.
Some 15 km away from the city, the neighbourhood is lined up with Sri Ashta Lakshmi Sametha Lakshminarayana temple, a few apartment blocks, spaciously-built mansions, duplex villas, and commercial buildings scattered all over the 130-acre site. More than buildings, the 20-year-old layout has a plenty of vacant plots.
The colony residents who preferred the place as their home have a different story to narrate. “Given the rising rents in the city, we have recently shifted to AU Teachers Layout. While investing in property, our idea was to stay connected with nature as we were drawn towards the serenity and scenic beauty of the locality. Little did we realise that the situation turns out to be entirely different. With hardly any signs of growth in terms of infrastructure and sanitation, we sometimes regret our decision,” says P. Padmavathi, a resident.
Welcome featureHere, the rent of a two-bedroom house is anywhere between Rs.4,000 and Rs.6,000. And that is the only welcome feature to draw people to the seemingly quiet residential area. With Gayatri Engineering College and Chaitanya Engineering College and a host of training centres dotting the neighbourhood, most apartments have been lent out for hostels.
The place which is known for its picturesque beauty is marred by refuse-littered roads, poor sanitation and no drainage system. Some of the residents say that they need to shell out from their own pocket to get the lines laid for domestic power connection.
