'AP capital will get all environmental clearances in a month'

Nellore (AP), Feb 27: All requisite forest and environmental clearances for the construction of Andhra Pradesh's new capital Amaravati would be granted within a month, Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar said today.

"Whatever be the procedural issues, we would grant all environmental and forest-related clearances for the new (state) capital in a month from now," the minister told a public meeting at Krishnapatnam here.

Javadekar was among other ministers present at the function where Union Power Minister Piyush Goyal and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu inaugurated the 1600 MW super critical Damodaram Sanjeevaiah Thermal Power Station (DSTPS).

On the occasion, Goyal also laid the foundation stone for the stage 2 expansion of DSTPS. Javadekar said his ministry would grant necessary clearances for the stage 2 of the 800 MW super critical unit at DSTPS, that the AP Power Generation Corporation has proposed to take up at Krishnapatnam.

"In Sri Potti Sriramulu Nellore district alone, we cleared 11 thermal power plants with a total generation capacity of 15,000 MW," he said. "N Chandrababu Naidu as such is a powerful Chief Minister. With this much (electric) power being generated, he will become even more 'powerful'," Javadekar quipped.

Union Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah Naidu, Union Minister of State for Science and Technology Y S Chowdary, several state ministers and officials were present.

PTI