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The foundation stone for Andhra Pradesh’s new capital Amaravati will be laid today. Pitched as a world-class riverfront capital city, Amaravati will be an energy-efficient and green city with concentration on industrial hubs. Here is a look at the layout plans of the new capital and its rich history:

Timeline: A long road to Amaravati

• March 14, 2014: The date of June 2 is set for the formal bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh into Telangana and residuary Andhra Pradesh states.
• June 8: Chandrababu Naidu takes office as chief minister of residuary Andhra Pradesh.
• July 22: The State Government says new capital will be between Vijayawada and Guntur.
• Oct. 30: Agriculture Minister P. Pulla Rao says the new capital will built upon 30,000 acres of land across 17 villages -- 14 in Tullur mandal and three in Managalgiri mandal. Land will be acquired through land pooling and landowners would be persuaded. The old Vijayawada-Guntur-Tenali-Mangalagiri Urban Development Authority would be abolished and a new Capital Region Development Authority (CRDA) would be constituted.
• Dec. 8: Chief Minister unveils the land pooling policy and compensation package for land owners. Patta holders in dryland areas will get a fully developed residential plot of 1,000 sq. yards and a commercial plot of 200 sq. yards. For assigned land owners: 800 sq. yards residential and 100 sq. yards commercial. In the jareeb lands close to the river banks, patta owners are to get 1,000 sq. yards residential and 300 sq. yards commercial. Assigned land owners here would get 800 sq. yards residential and 200 sq. yards commercial. In addition, dryland owners would get Rs. 30,000 a year as annuity for 10 years to compensate for the loss of agricultural income with a Rs. 3,000 increase per year. For jareeb farmers: annuity of Rs 50,000 per year with a Rs. 5,000 increase every year.
• Dec. 31: Government notifies an area covering 7068 sq. km as the broader AP Capital Region and 122 sq. km as the Capital City region. The AP Capital Region Development Authority Act, 2014 comes into force.
• Jan. 3, 2015: Municipal Administration Minister P. Narayana releases gazette notification for the Land Pooling Scheme (LPS) at Nelapadu village.
• FEB. 27: Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu announces enhanced package for jareeb farmers in river front villages: 1000 sq. yard residential plots plus 450 sq. yard commercial plot per each acre surrendered. Similar enhanced package extended to farmers in the semi-urban villages of Navuluru, Yerrabalem, Undavalli, Penumaka and Bethapudi. government also annuity of Rs 30000 per year to farmers in upland areas and Rs.50,000 per year to jareeb farmers even if they have less than an acre.
• March 5: Jana Sena party chief Pawan Kalyan warns of an indefinite fast if the Government tries to forcibly acquire land from farmers. Visiting Undavalli, he says he has no problem if farmers give their land voluntarily. “But I will fight if I come to know that your land is being taken away forcibly.”
• April 1: Cabinet approves Amaravati as the name of the new capital. It’s named after the mythological City of the Gods.
• May 26: Singapore’s Second Minister for Trade and Industry S. Iswaran hands over master plan for Amaravati. He calls it the People’s Capital and says it will be a “very liveable city”. He says the plan envisages use of green spaces and natural assets with emphasis on public transport.
• June 7: Chandrababu Naidu performs the bhoomi puja for Amaravati. Announces his resolve to develop it into an economic hub to beat even Singapore.
• July 21: The government of Singapore presents a master plan for the seed capital area (SCA) of Amaravati. The plan defines the exact locations of the legislative and administrative buildings and the downtown area. The seed capital is spread over an area of 16.9 sq. km., enveloping three villages: Lingayapalem, Tallayapalem and Uddandarayapalem. The seed capital is planned for three lakh residents.
• Aug. 24: Jana Sena Chief Pawan Kalyan visits riverfront villages again to meet farmers who are protesting that their lands are being acquired through coercion.
• Aug. 27: YSR Congress chief Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy declares that all farmers will get their land back if his party is voted to power. “The TDP Government is not going to last long. It will be shortly bundled out and thrown into the Bay of Bengal,” he says.
• Oct. 11: National Green Tribunal (NGT) asks State Government not to proceed with work in the capital area until the Amaravati project gets environmental clearance. But the State Government says the NGT’s concerns will not be an impediment to the foundation stone ceremony on Oct. 22.
• Oct. 17: Preparations to celebrate the Amaravati foundation ceremony gather speed.
• Oct. 18: Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu meets Telangana CM K. Chandrasekhar Rao to invite him to the ceremony.
• Oct. 21: All set for the Amaravati foundation ceremony at Uddandarayunipallem on Oct. 22.