Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy has declared Vizag to be the state’s new capital. He was speaking in New Delhi at the International Diplomatic Alliance Meet.
“I am here to invite you to Visakhapatnam, which will be our capital. I will also be shifting to Vizag,” said the Andhra Pradesh CM.
“I invite you and your colleagues to see for yourself how easy it is to do business in Andhra Pradesh,” CM Reddy added.
Previously, Reddy stated unequivocally that the future of the state lay in decentralized development, proposing Visakhapatnam as the state administration’s seat.
As the headquarters, it will also be the base of the state’s governor, while the legislature will function from Amaravati. He had said the high court would be moved to Kurnool, once the capital when Andhra was separated from the erstwhile Madras state in 1956.
Reddy believes that distributing the executive, legislative, and judicial functions across the state will promote equitable regional development. While there are no parallels in the country, his ardent supporters in the Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress (YSRC) Party argue that it is inspired by multiple capital city experiences.
Reddy’s decision to relocate to Visakhapatnam, nearly 500 kilometers east of Hyderabad, gives it leverage in transforming the Eastern Seaboard urban agglomeration into a bustling metropolis. The city has the potential to grow in size and stature, surpassing the capitals of the newly formed states of Uttarakhand, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, and, more recently, Telangana.
