Capital of Andhra Pradesh to be called Amaravathi, after Satavahana city

**Hyderabad:**The Andhra Pradesh Government on Wednesday decided to name the new capital of the state which is coming up in Vijayawada-Guntur region as `Amaravathi’, after the ancient seat of power of the Satavahanas. [caption id=“attachment_2182929” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Andhra Pradesh CM N Chandrababu Naidu. IBNLive[/caption] The resolution to this effect was passed by the state cabinet which met under chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu in Hyderabad. Amaravathi town is located in Guntur district and the same name is being adopted for the capital in view of its historical, spiritual and mythological significance, Naidu told reporters tonight. It is the city of Lord Indra, the king of the gods, the chief minister said referring to mythology. Amaravathi, located on the banks of river Krishna, derives its name from Lord Amareswara temple in the village and it is known as ‘Dakshina Kashi’ (Kashi of the south), he said, adding it was the capital of Satavahana rulers for 400 years. Amaravathi has a lot of Buddhist significance as well with Lord Buddha believed to have visited the village, besides King Ashoka and famed Chinese traveller Hsuan Tsang also believed to have visited the place. It has been found in excavations that certain relic of Gautam Buddha were preserved in the village. Buddhist spiritual guru Dalai Lama had conducted ‘Kalachakra’, a Buddhist event, some years ago at Amaravathi and the Centre has recently identified it as a heritage city, Naidu said. The government would like to develop the capital as a modern city that is convenient to poor people as well, the chief minister said, adding it would be a “people’s capital”. The Singapore government is preparing master plan for the capital for free. The plan has three components – overall capital region, capital city and seed capital, Naidu said. The Singapore government submitted a report on capital region during Naidu’s visit to the city state yesterday, the capital city master plan details would be submitted by May 15 and that on seed capital would be given by June. The capital would be connected by radial roads and will have satellite townships. There would be a ring road, railway connectivity and a new airport. Inland waterways and growth corridors would be developed around the capital and its region. The state cabinet has in-principle accepted the broad details of master plan for capital city and capital region and any new ideas would be incorporated. Naidu thanked the farmers and land owners in the proposed capital region who have handed over about 33,000 acres of land. The cabinet meeting also approved the state’s industrial policy which would be in force from 2015 to 2020. A sectoral policy for textiles, biotechnology an automobile has also been announced. Single desk clearance, 24x7 power supply, tax exemptions, forming a land bank of 15-20 lakh acres, skill development for local residents and emphasis on promoting SC, ST, BC and women entrepreneurs are some of the main features of the policies. Naidu thanked the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and the Centre for releasing funds under various heads to AP as part of promises made to the state during bifurcation last year. He, however, said further support is required to the state till it achieved a level playing field. PTI