Is AP Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy mulling over conducting a referendum on where the capital of Andhra Pradesh should be? According to a report in an English daily, the AP Government would seek the opinion of the people on where the capital should be. If this is true, then the Government may well be opening a Pandora's box This could lead to a plethora of problems. The people from North Andhra could want the capital in Vizag, while those from Rayalaseema might want to have the capital in Kurnool. This could lead to regional issues.
Also, what about the hundreds of crores of rupees that have already spent on creating some infrastructure in Amaravati. Will that investment go down the drain? Even if the government wants to shift the capital, will the Centre agree to it? If it does not agree, will funds worth Rs 1500 crore meant for Amaravati be Released for caital construction?
One thing that Jagan could actually do is to shift the High Court to some other place and similarly shift some other key institutions to other places. But, all these are contentious issues and it remains to be seen how YS Jagan will tackle them.
Also, what about the hundreds of crores of rupees that have already spent on creating some infrastructure in Amaravati. Will that investment go down the drain? Even if the government wants to shift the capital, will the Centre agree to it? If it does not agree, will funds worth Rs 1500 crore meant for Amaravati be Released for caital construction?
One thing that Jagan could actually do is to shift the High Court to some other place and similarly shift some other key institutions to other places. But, all these are contentious issues and it remains to be seen how YS Jagan will tackle them.