Swadeshi Jagran Manch (SJM) national convener Arun Ojha has said it is not proper to construct the capital city on fertile land. Speaking to reporters at K.L. University during the valedictory of SJM’s national conference on Sunday, Mr. Ojha said the region had no multi-national companies, and that by seeking expertise from Singapore, the government would be paving the way for Vijayawada to become another Hyderabad, which is battling with issues of urbanisation.
“This is not the place to construct the capital. We will try to impress upon the government to rethink the contentious issue, as fertile lands are not supposed to be acquired,” he observed, while asserting that there were enough resources and talent available locally for executing the government’s plans.
‘Unhappy with BJP’
Mr. Ojha said the first year of the Narendra Modi government was a letdown, as it aggressively pursued the same economic policies that its predecessor UPA had implemented to its own detriment.
“The government is insisting that FDI is desperately needed to overcome capital crunch, but is it not for ambitious projects like smart cities and bullet trains, which it intends to raise capital from abroad?” he asked, suggesting that the priorities started going wrong soon after the regime change happened with a lot of public expectations.
