All eyes are on the Interim Government Complex (IGC) under construction at Velagapudi in Guntur district where employees of the Andhra Pradesh Secretariat have been asked to shift by June 27. The shifting of the employees from Hyderabad to Amaravati is fraught with uncertainties. Moving in amid fears and a great deal of disinclination, the employees are not sure how long it would take for them to find their feet in the new place.
A good number of women employees, who are said to be shifting to Amaravati alone for now, have asked for a hostel facility for the initial six months or one year. “My spouse works in the software sector and I don’t want to disturb my grown-up son’s academic career at this crucial juncture. I have no choice but to come to A.P. alone, at least for now. A hostel facility will spare us the pain of scouting for a decent accommodation in an unfamiliar terrain,” said H. Bhramaramba, who works in the Rajiv Swagruha Corporation Ltd, a special purpose vehicle created by the Government to provide affordable housing to the middle class people.
Sources indicate that the June 27 migration will only be a ceremonial one marking the ‘journey’ of the Secretariat employees from Hyderabad, the erstwhile capital of Andhra Pradesh to Amaravati, the newly-carved out capital.
“A couple of Chief Secretaries may move in first while we expect most of the employees to be working from Velagapudi by August 31. By first quarter of August, everybody will shift here lock, stock and barrel,” APNGOs’ Association president P. Ashok Babu told The Hindu.
Talk about the challenges that are galore, he quips: “When we could handle Hud-Hud cyclone, can’t we handle this? Uprooting from a place and disturbance caused to children’s education are some of the problems. But the employees must understand that migration is a compulsion caused by bifurcation of the State. The Government must also be compassionate towards their problems.”
Referring to the plea for the hostel facility, he said the Association was trying to convince the Government. “They could be given accommodation until they are stabilised. Since the security aspect is paramount, the Government will have to take the bigger picture into consideration,” he said.
Despair over distance
The fact that all employees want to stay close to the new Secretariat is becoming yet another annoying factor. In Hyderabad, almost 20 per cent of the Secretariat employees stay beyond a distance of 20 km. There are nearly 1,000 vacant houses in Guntur which is only 30 km from the IGC which translates into a daily travel of 40-45 minutes. But there are no takers.
