Jana Sena Party president and Andhra Pradesh deputy chief minister Pawan Kalyan on Friday came up with an interesting suggestion on making use of the palatial complex on Rushikonda hills in Visakhapatnam, built during the previous YSR Congress party regime at a cost of nearly Rs 500 crore.
Pawan Kalyan along with his Jana Sena Party ministers Nadendla Manohar and Kandula Durgesh, besides officials, inspected the controversial palatial complex and raised concern over the colossal waste of money in construction of the complex and lack of maintenance.
He said the government would consider the proposal to repurpose the buildings and make them revenue-generating assets.
He suggested that the Rushikonda palace can be converted into a MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions) destination.
“Many experts have suggested transforming the complex into a MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions) destination or a hub for destination weddings on the lines of Dubai MICE,” he said.
The deputy chief minister said he would soon submit a recommendation to chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu.
“Any decision will be finalized before the winter session of the assembly,” he said.
The ultramodern complex, spread over 9.88 acres and comprising seven blocks and had the total built-up area of 19,968 square meters, was inaccessible to the common people till the YSRCP lost power in June 2024.
During the visit of chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu to the palace in November 2024, it was revealed then that the building has flooring with imported granite, 200 chandeliers, each costing up to Rs 15 lakh, cosy interiors designed at a cost of Rs 33 crore, imported furniture, spa, Jacuzzis and spacious washrooms with commodes each costing Rs 15 lakh.
It has landscaping with exotic imported plants and grass, advanced sound system, a very large home theatre screen, multi-hued illumination are among some of the features of this mansion.
Though Naidu had then promised to find ways to make use of it for public purposes, no decision has been till now.
During his visit to the Rushikonda palace, Pawan Kalyan was shocked to find that the palace was being badly maintained. The ceiling planks collapsed in some places and there was evident water leakage in the area as well.
“The buildings are poorly maintained, environmentally damaging, and economically unviable. Even the walls are peeling off and water is leaking from several blocks,” Pawan Kalyan said.
He instructed that urgent repairs be taken up first to make the buildings safe and operational.
“Only four out of seven planned blocks were completed, with costs spiralling from the initial estimate of Rs 164 crore to Rs 453 crore, nearly four times the budget,” he said.
“The original tourism resort on Rushikonda used to generate around Rs 7 crore annual revenue to the tourism department. Now, the government is spending heavy amount for maintenance, including Rs 1.5 crore annually just on electricity bills,” the deputy CM said.
