GoM To Examine What To Do With Vizag’s Idle ‘Rushikonda Palace’

VIJAYAWADA: Andhra Pradesh government on Saturday constituted a Group of Ministers (GoM) to examine and recommend the best possible way in which the idle Rushikonda resort in Visakhapatnam could be utilised.

AP chief secretary K. Vijayanand issued GO 1586 constituting the GoM “to study and recommend the way forward for proper utilisation of the idle resort at Rushikonda.”

Significantly, Deputy Chief Minister K. Pawan Kalyan visited the Rushikonda resort refurbished by the YSRC government, inspected its infrastructure, and took note of the facilities available at the site. His visit has drawn fresh attention to the long-pending decision on how best to utilise the strategically located resort.

Ahead of the 2024 elections, the ruling coalition parties had criticised the Rushikonda structure as a palace being built for the use of Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, then the chief minister of AP, once Visakhapatnam became the capital of AP.

According to the GO, the GoM will be headed by Tourism, Culture and Cinematography minister Kandula Durgesh, with other members being Finance, Planning, Commercial Taxes and Legislative Affairs minister Payyavula Keshav, and Social Welfare, Disabled and Senior Citizen Welfare minister Dr. Dola Sree Bala Veeranjaneya Swamy.

Special chief secretary (Youth Advancement, Tourism and Culture Department) will be the convener of the GoM, while vice chairman and managing director of the A.P. Tourism Development Corporation will extend necessary support.

The GoM has been authorised to invite special representatives from other departments, if required. The committee will submit its recommendations to the state government, which will then take a final call on the Rushikonda property.

During his Senatho Senani programme at Visakhapatnam on Friday, Deputy CM Pawan Kalyan had proposed that the Rushikonda buildings be turned into a MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions) facility. Pawan Kalyan said that a resolution regarding MICE will be presented to Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu and discussed in the State Legislative Assembly, aiming to transform the unused luxury buildings into a revenue-generating asset for the state government.

The Jana Sena chief has maintained that ₹453 crore of public money has been wasted by the previous YSR Congress government on just four blocks. He further said the buildings had once generated ₹7 crore in annual income as green resorts. But now, the Rushikonda venue has burdened the state government with ₹1.5 crore on electricity bills alone.

Perhaps the most vocal critic of the project, Pawan Kalyan has maintained that all rules and norms have been violated by the previous YSRC government while rebuilding the structure. “The project involved unauthorised excavation of 8.48 lakh cubic meters of soil from the Rushikonda area, which has delivered a terrible blow to the environment in the region,” the Deputy CM has declared.