Amaravati plans 100-year flood mitigation system

Vijayawada: Amaravati is being developed with a century-long vision for flood mitigation and sustainable urban growth, Amaravati Development Corporation (ADC) chairperson and managing director D Lakshmi Parthasarathy informed a visiting World Bank delegation during its tour of the capital region on Monday.A nine-member team led by World Bank vice-president and chief risk officer Dennis McLaughlin visited Amaravati to review ongoing infrastructure and flood-control projects. The delegation held discussions with senior officials at the AP CRDA headquarters in Rayapudi before inspecting gravity canal works near the E-3 and N-16 junction.Explaining the govt’s long-term strategy, Lakshmi Parthasarathy said Amaravati’s flood mitigation framework was designed with a 100-year outlook by integrating streams, reservoirs, and drainage systems into the city’s master plan. She added that the govt is also promoting eco-tourism as part of the flood-control infrastructure.Officials said the proposed network of 35 arterial and sub-arterial roads would strengthen connectivity and boost tourism across the capital. The 7.8-km gravity canal under development is also being planned as a tourism corridor, with boating facilities and international-standard thematic infrastructure across 5,000 sq.m plots. Renowned architects have been engaged for the project.The ADC chief also briefed the delegation on large-scale beautification and flood management works along the Kondaveeti Vagu and Palavagu waterways. Avenue plantations and landscaping are being taken up along a 24.4-km stretch of Kondaveeti Vagu and a 17.24-km stretch of Palavagu.She said reservoirs are being developed to strengthen flood management capacity. The Penumaka reservoir will have a capacity of 0.1 TMC, while the Shakamuru reservoir, spread over 50 acres, will have a capacity of 0.03 TMC. The Neerukonda reservoir is being planned with a capacity of 0.4 TMC.ADC officials said the integrated flood-control and tourism infrastructure would transform Amaravati into a major urban tourism destination. The World Bank team also met ESMU representatives later in the day. The visit was coordinated by AP CRDA Additional Commissioner G Suryasai Praveen Chand.