Minister for Tourism Muttamsetti Srinivasa Rao agreed with the observation of the NAREDCO and CREDAI representatives that there are problems in the supply of sand.
Addressing builders and layout developers after inaugurating the three-day property show, the Minister said that Visakhapatnamwas the fastest growing city in Asia and the construction activity has gone up tremendously.
There were, however, no sand reaches in the district and the nearest sand reaches were in Srikakulam district. A proposal was put before the District Collector to establish an exclusive sand reach for supply of sand to Visakhapatnam. He called upon the realtors to ensure quality and safety in constructions.
He called upon builders to think innovatively and design structures in tune with the latest trends to attract buyers. He also urged them to extend insurance facility to construction workers so that it would be of help to them in the event of an accident.
‘Use rock sand’
Visakhapatnam MP M.V.V. Satyanarayana suggested the formation of a corporation for ensuring proper supply of sand. He also underlined the need for realtors to think of alternatives to sand like rock sand to minimise the use of river sand in view of environmental problems due to excessive exploitation.
He recalled that the previous government was penalised ₹100 crore for drawing excessive sand from the Krishna river. He assured the members of taking up the issue of sand availability with the Chief Minister and come out with a solution soon.
A delegate from Telangana said that rock sand was being used in construction for the past several years. It was far better than river sand and was being given at about half the price of regular sand. River sand was being used only for plastering of walls.
Gajuwaka MLA Tippala Nagi Reddy hailed the contribution of builders in providing housing facility to the people living in the ‘financial capital’ of Andhra Pradesh.
NAREDCO AP president Haribabu spoke.
