Andhra Pradesh Govt Terminates Amaravati Project With Singapore Consortium

The Andhra Pradesh (AP) government on Tuesday said its upcoming Amaravati capital city will not have an exclusive area for startups as planned. This came after Singapore consortium that had partnered the government for the project pulled out of it. The state Cabinet that met under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy took the decision to terminate the agreement with the consortium.

“The government, after careful examination of the matter”, had granted “approval to refrain from proceeding further in the Start-up Area Development Project of 6.84 sq km and in principle approval to wind up Amaravati Development Partners Pvt. Ltd. (ADP) by voluntary liquidation on a mutual consent basis between the shareholders of ADP i.e., ADCL (Amaravati Development Corporation Ltd) and SAIH (Singapore Amaravati Investment Holdings Pvt Ltd),” according to the Indian Express report.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had laid the foundation stone for building Amaravati four years ago. The Andhra Pradesh government and the Singapore consortium in 2017 had established a partnership structure for the development of the Amaravati Capital City Start-Up Area Project in 6.84 sq km (1,691 acres of government land).

Prior to this, the committee, headed by retired IAS officer G N Rao, was constituted by the state government on September 13 with a six-week deadline to submit its report.

A statement from Singapore’s ministry of trade and industry on Tuesday said: “Companies recognise such risks when venturing into any overseas market and factor them into investment decisions. In this instance, the Singapore Consortium companies said the project has cost them a few million dollars, and that its closure does not impact their investment plans in India."

“Companies recognise such risks when venturing into any overseas market and factor them into their investment decisions. In this instance, the Singapore consortium companies have stated that the project has cost them a few million dollars, and that its closure does not impact their investment plans in India. Singapore companies remain interested in opportunities in Andhra Pradesh and other Indian states because of the size and potential of the market. Our economic agencies will continue to help our companies internationalise by exploring opportunities in India and other overseas markets,” Singapore’s Minister-in-Charge of Trade Relations S Iswaran was quoted as saying.