Visakhapatnam: In an effort to decentralise development, the TD government has decided to upgrade 14 cities into Smart Cities. While Visakhapatnam, Tirupati and Kakinada are part of the Centre’s Smart Cities Mission, the state will focus on Kurnool, Kadapa, Anantapur, Chittoor, Nellore, Ongole, Machili-patnam, Eluru, Rajahmundry, Vizianagaram and Srikakulam.

Recently, the state government launched special purpose vehicles for implementing its mission in Anantapur, Eluru, Kurnool, Ongole and Srikakulam.

Speaking at the Mahanadu here on Monday, Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu said development should not be confined to the capital Amaravati or major cities such as Visakhapatnam or Tirupati.

“These 14 smart cities will get dedicated industrial park as well as infrastructure. The rate of urbanisation in Andhra Pradesh stands at 29 per cent. Urbanisation accelerates the development of a state and creates more wealth, which has happened in the case of Che-nnai, Bengaluru, Hyder-abad, etc,” said Mr Naidu.

Vizag, Tirupati and Kakinada will each get Rs 500 crore for the next five years from the Centre, and the state government give an equal matching grant. These cities will go for PPP mode for some projects, while the government will undertake some projects.

For the state-sponsored Smart Cities, funds for the development of these cities will be solely spent by the state government.

Government whip Kuna Ravi Kumar explained that the Smart City proposals in Vizag with an estimated cost of about Rs 1,584 crore and in Tirupati at an estimated cost of Rs 1,610 crore primarily focussed on the IT component, e-governance and physical and social infrastructure.

“Vizag will get smart schools, 24x7 water supply, public bike sharing, e-rickshaws, efficient urban mobility, disaster management, etc. The area surrounding the airport in Tirupati is being developed into an IT hub and the city will have a waste-to-energy plant. Orvakal in Kurnool district will get an industrial hub in more than 10,000 acres. Piped gas network, science centre, solar rooftops, e-schools are part of the smart city proposals in Kakinada,” said Mr Ravi Kumar.