Capital at north of Visakhapatnam suggested: GN Rao Committee

Hyderabad: The G N Rao committee has recommended that the executive capital be located in the northern corner of Visakhapatnam bordering Vizianagaram in view of the adverse aspects a coastal town has in terms of weather conditions and security aspects.

Listing out various points in the committee report at a press conference here on Wednesday, its chairman G N Rao cleared the reports in a section of the press that he had opposed having the capital in Visakhapatnam. He said the recommendations of the committee were misinterpreted. All the remarks they made about the adverse aspects were nothing new. Those problems are faced by any coastal town.

"We only highlighted those aspects as a caution to the government and recommended that the government can have its offices about 50 km from the port city. This would be part of the Visakhapatnam Metropolitan Region.

He said that Visakhapatnam was a key contender for the establishment of the Secretariat and other government offices with its strengths. He said that Petro Chemical Industry, Bhavanapadu Port and Bhogapuram are the key strengths of Visakhapatnam.

Rao said the committee had toured several districts, collected data and opinions and analysed them before making its recommendations. Seven experts from Delhi, Hyderabad and other cities were part of the committee. They studied the geographical features of the cities like Visakhapatnam, Machilipatnam and Vijayawada before making recommendations.

The issues like seismic zone and others were also considered by the experts who have about 40 to 50 years of experience. The report was not prepared in a short period as was being alleged by some. It took three to four months. The Committee also went round the state and received the representations from about 4000 farmers in Vijayawada capital city region. It has also recommended decentralized development of the state. Capital in Visakhapatnam, he said, would trigger development of north coastal districts, he said.

Rao said that the committee has analysed the regional imbalances and recommended for the establishment of four zones. The North Region would consist of Visakhapatnam and Vizianagaram. The Coastal zone comprises West Godavari, East Godavari and Krishna districts. The Southern zone would include Guntur, Prakasam and Nellore districts. The fourth zone comprises all the districts of Rayalaseema.