The Central government is preparing to introduce an amendment to officially designate Amaravati as the capital of Andhra Pradesh in a week or two, according to reports from New Delhi.
The Union ministry of law has reportedly granted approval for a proposal to amend Section 5(2) of the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014, to explicitly include Amaravati as the state’s capital.
Once Parliament approves the amendment and a Gazette notification is issued, Amaravati will gain full legal capital status, ending years of political and judicial disputes.
After the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh in 2014, the TDP government led by N. Chandrababu Naidu declared Amaravati as the state capital in 2015. Construction activity continued for four years.
The situation changed drastically when the YSRCP came to power in 2019. Within six months, the new government proposed a three-capital model; Amaravati (legislative), Visakhapatnam (executive), and Kurnool (judicial).
Despite passing related legislation, the proposal was stalled due to multiple legal challenges and court orders, leaving the capital issue unresolved.
When the coalition government returned to power in 2024, it reviewed past legal and administrative records and reportedly found that the Chandrababu Naidu government had never issued an official Gazette notification naming Amaravati as the capital. This procedural lapse enabled the previous government’s attempt to relocate the capital.
Farmer groups from Amaravati; who have long demanded capital status for the region; intensified pressure on the ruling coalition and the Centre to correct this oversight. The state government has since been lobbying strongly for the amendment.
Since the Reorganisation Act does not mention any specific capital for Andhra Pradesh, the Union government is now preparing to amend it.
The winter session of Parliament is expected to take up the amendment in both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha.
The bill aims to provide long-term legal protection to Amaravati, ensuring future governments cannot attempt to relocate the capital without revisiting the Act itself.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is said to be keen on accelerating the amendment process following the Law Ministry’s clearance.
An official announcement from the Centre is expected soon.
