Amaravati: Union Minister Pemmasani Chandrasekhar said on Thursday that the Union government will introduce in Parliament, either in the ongoing session or the next one, a bill to designate Amaravati as the permanent capital of Andhra Pradesh, clarifying that the delay is linked to “technical considerations” rather than policy hesitation.

Speaking to reporters in New Delhi, the Minister shared that the key procedural issue under examination is whether Amaravati should be formally recognised as the state capital with retrospective effect from 2014 or from the present date. Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu is “closely monitoring the progress” of the piece of legislation, he added.

Chandrasekhar said that developmental activity in the capital region had resumed at pace, with “thousands of people” engaged in various construction and institutional projects.

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had already laid the foundation stone for 16 national institutions in the capital region, he mentioned. Work related to HUDCO’s presence in Amaravati was also advancing, he added.

The Union Minister criticised former chief minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy and the previous YSRCP administration, alleging that Andhra Pradesh “suffered significant setbacks” in capital development during their tenure. He accused the former government of failing to utilise lands pooled from 34,000 farmers, which he said had slowed down Amaravati’s progress. He claimed that letters had been sent by YSRCP leaders to international agencies, including the World Bank, attempting to block funding support for Amaravati’s development.