In what could be termed a politically sensitive decision, the State government has decided to pull down Praja Vedika, a sprawling conference hall next to former Chief Minister and TDP national president N. Chandrababu Naidu’s residence, at Undavalli near here.
If the tone and tenor of Chief Minister Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, who made an announcement in this regard at the Collectors’ conference on Monday were to be considered, the demolitions would not stop with Praja Vedika. The government would remove all illegal structures that have come up near the river Krishna in blatant violation of the River Conservancy Act 1884, National Green Tribunal(NGT) orders, etc.
“We have assembled in this building which is an unauthorised construction by the previous government. This will be the last meeting in this hall. We will pull down the building from the day after tomorrow,” Mr. Jagan said in a stern voice.
He chose to conduct the meeting at Praja Vedika only to disclose the facts, the CM said.
“On Tuesday, I will hold another meeting with IPS officers in this hall and it will be the last one here. From Wednesday, the demolition of Praja Vedika will begin,” he said.
Without specifically naming Mr. Naidu’s residence, the Chief Minister said all the illegal constructions on the banks of the Krishna would be demolished.
Mr. Jagan’s decision comes in the wake of Mr. Naidu’s request to direct the authorities to allow him to use Praja Vedika. The government did not take any decision on his letter. Instead, it took possession of the hall.
Cost escalation
Reading out the reports on unauthorised constructions that came up on the riverfront, Mr. Jagan said the previous government had flouted all norms and rules. Initially, they invited short notice tenders and estimated that the cost of construction of Praja Vedika would be ₹5 crore. Suddenly, it went up to ₹8 crore. Irrigation Department engineers had clearly stated that no objection certificate could not be issued to the structure.
“We immediately demolish unauthorised structures of the common man or of the voiceless, But we remain silent when the government itself flouts rules. What message do we want to give to the public? So, let’s start with the demolition of the government building,” he asserted to which the officials responded with thunderous applause.
The TDP government constructed Praja Vedika in 2017 to enable Mr. Naidu to meet people and accept representations from them, besides addressing official meetings.
Telugu Desam leaders cried foul over the government’s decision.
