Hyderabad: A crucial Rs 9,000 crore capital city-connectivity project in AP was approved by the Centre.
The Union transport ministry has agreed to take up conversion-cum-development of 642 kilometre of roads connecting the capital city on Vijayawada-Guntur stretch from Kadapa and Anantapur districts into National Highways.
Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu lobbied for this project during his two-day trip to Delhi wherein he impressed upon Union transport minister Nitin Gadkari on its importance.
The Union minister agreed to expand the road between Vijayawada and Guntur, a 32-km stretch.
Officials in the transport department told this newspaper that the road width ranges from 50-feet to 100-feet at various places on the route from Anantapur to Vijayawada-Guntur and from Kadapa to capital city area. They are State roads.
“As per the Government of India norms, the state capital should be connected with every district headquarter by a national highway. Only Anantapur and Kadapa are connected to the capital by highway roads,” officials said.
The Centre will develop the state road into national highway i.e. four lane road with a divider in between. The stretch between Anantapur and Vijayawada and Guntur is 516.57 km. It will start from Kodur junction near NH-44 in Anantapur district and pass through Battanapalli, tadipatri, Kolimigundla, Banaganapalli, Gajulapalli, Giddalur, Cumbum , Tokapalli, Vinukonda, narsaraopeta and end NH-16 in Guntur district. This 516.57 m road passes through Anantapur, Kurnool, Prakasam and Guntur districts.
“Already there is connectivity from Kadapa to Vijayawada-Guntur stretch through various national highways connecting the State roads. There is only a gap of 125.40 km that needs to be developed into national highway and this is being done now,” officials said.
The AP government will prepare Detailed project reports and submit to the Union transport Ministry shortly.
