CRDA may face tough WB terms on capital funding

The bank may inspect a whole lot of issues in the wake of the farmers’ concerns

February 13, 2017 01:16 am | Updated 01:16 am IST - VIJAYAWADA:

The proposed funding for the Amaravati Sustainable Capital City Development Project (ASCCDP) by the World Bank (WB) to the tune of $300 million may not come easily unless the A.P. Capital Region Development Authority (AP-CRDA) fulfils the stipulated norms, some of which are tough.

The funding is to be done by the WB’s project financing arm International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) but it may ask the CRDA to fulfil a whole lot of conditions to avail itself of the assistance, in the wake of the concerns raised by farmers.

The WB has turned down a farmers’ ‘Request for Inspection’ (RFI) of the entire gamut of issues related to the Land Pooling Scheme (LPS) and the possible environmental impact the construction would have on multi-cropped lands, on the ground that it is too early to register it. The WB replied that the request could be examined when new evidence became available as the project progressed.

The Andhra Pradesh Government and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank are to provide $200 million and $215 million respectively while the balance is sought to be extended by the IBRD.

The WB’s approval is scheduled for October 2017. The funds are to be used for infrastructure in 29 villages. Those who filed the RFI had alleged that the farmers had been coerced to give their land for the capital city construction, which jeopardised the livelihood of nearly 1.53 lakh people.

The LPS notification has not allegedly proposed compensation for the inhabitants of 13 islands in the Krishna river. More importantly, the farmers expressed an apprehension that taking over the islands and wetlands which were a source of rich biodiversity would have a huge impact on the ecosystem.

They also raised fears that Thullur, Tadepalli and Mangalagiri would face flooding on a permanent basis due to the construction along a 30-km stretch of the river.

These mandals were flood-prone and the construction of bridges and creation of other infrastructure would aggravate the problem, they argued. CPI(M) capital area committee convener Ch. Babu Rao told The Hindu that the farmers had furnished evidence to a WB team during its visit to Thullur last month, but harboured no hope of justice as, according to him, the bank would pay attention to the aggrieved but eventually would dismiss their case.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.