In a big boost to the efforts of the Chandrababu Naidu-led government to give top priority for construction of capital city Amaravati, the World Bank has given the green signal for the release of Rs. 1700 crore as the second tranche of assistance for the construction work of Amaravati. This will be in addition to already sanctioned Rs 1600 crore.
The AP Government sources say that about 200 million dollars, or about Rs. 1700 crore, is likely to be released as the second tranche by the end of this year.
Construction work in the capital will accelerate further with the release of these funds. The World Bank, which is already working with the Asian Development Bank to release huge funds for the capital of Amaravati, is providing assistance to the state government.
World Bank representatives are also conducting field visits to collect details on the utilization of these funds, which are being provided with a guarantee from the Center. The World Bank and the Asian Development Bank have already agreed to provide a total of 1600 million dollars (Rs. 13,600 crores) of assistance, 800 million dollars each, for the construction of the first phase of Amaravati.
Of this, the World Bank has already released 207 million dollars as the first tranche in March this year. S. Suresh Kumar, Principal Secretary, Municipal Administration and Urban Development Department, revealed that about 50 percent of these funds have been spent on various works.
According to the World Bank rules, once 75 percent of the first tranche of funds is spent, one can apply for the second tranche of funds. Officials say that this will reach the target by December. Along with this, the central government will also provide Rs. 1400 crore as its share.
World Bank and ADB teams are monitoring the progress of the works in the capital every month at the field level. The World Bank has expressed satisfaction in the report released recently on the implementation of the works. This has cleared the way for the release of the second tranche of funds.