AP Capital: Is riverfront city not safe?

17 Oct, 2014 12:59 IST|Sakshi
AP Capital: Is riverfront city not safe?

Post Hudhud cyclone, is the government having second thoughts at the Andhra Pradesh capital site? Yes, if sources are to be believed.

The current capital location between Guntur and Krishna districts, is hemmed by river Krishna. A swollen Krishna can pose problems to Tadepalli, Amaravathi and Gollapudi, which will form part of the capital region. The government has already directed the officials to identify the lands for the purpose. A committee, led by Finance Minister Yanamala Ramakrishnudu was to visit the region from Friday, but the visit has been deferred due to Hudhud cyclone.

Citing the massive losses to Vizag city due to Hudhud, several experts have suggested that riverfront capital city may not be a good idea. More over, Krishna river is quite unruly when in spate. It has periodically inundated the river front cities in the past. For instance, in 2009, Kurnool city suffered massive inundation. Almost one third of the city was under water. Even in Krishna district, floods have ruined the Keesara bridge and the ring road and the VTPS were submerged.

Keeping this in view, some experts have suggested that Nuzvid could be an ideal capital site as it is a good 288 feet above sea level. In comparison, Mangalagiri is 141 feet, Amaravathi is 118 feet and Vijayawada is 75 feet above the sea level.

However, another section of experts suggest that several international cities like Amsterdam and Bonn are riverfront cities. They suggest that proper drainage and flood control measures are important for any city, more so for a capital city.

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