In what is believed to be the first step towards developing Visakhapatnam as the administrative capital of Andhra Pradesh, the YSRCP government led by CM Y S Jagan on Friday signed an agreement with GMR Group to construct airport at Bhogapuram in Vizianagaram district.
Representatives of the GMR group signed on the Memorandum of Understanding with AP government representatives in the presence of the chief minster at the latter’s camp office at Tapepalli on Friday.
While GMR chairman G B S Raju signed the papers on behalf of the company, industries special chief secretary Karikala Valavan signed on behalf of the state government.
Industries minister Gautam Reddy, AP Industrial and Infrastructure Corporation chairperson R K Roja and other officials took part in the meeting.
The GMR representatives said the company would build the Bhogapuram airport with highest technology as per the expectations of the chief minister. The GMR group would make use of the services of reputed international consultants for the same.
The GMR group chairman said it was a privilege and great luck for him to construct the airport in the area which is his birthplace. The airport would result in the development of north coastal Andhra by leaps and bounds, he said.
The chief minister said expressways and flyovers would be constructed from airport to Visakhapatnam city so that people would reach the administrative capital easily and fast.
“We shall complete this road infrastructure at the earliest,” he said.
The government is also planning to construct metro rail network in Visakhapatnam that would be extended up to Bhogapuram airport, so that it would reduce the burden on road travel, Jagan said.
