Land taken from LuLu remains unutilised in Vizag

Visakhapatnam A large parcel of land in the heart of city, once proposed to be auctioned by the YSRCP Government for a reserve price of Rs1,452 crore at Rs2.2 lakh per square yard in 2021 has remained unutilised since then leading to a lot of speculation regarding plans in future for its utilisation.

The land in question in an extent of 13.83 acres at Harbour Park was resumed from UAE-based LuLu Group by the State Government on the plea of its allotment for a song to the group to construct an international convention centre, shopping mall and a five-star hotel with a beachfront view by the previous TDP regime with a total investment of Rs2,200 crore.

Asked to comment on the jinxed project, noted social activist and former IAS officer EAS Sarma told Bizz Buzz on Tuesday that the land in Survey No. 1011 measuring 13.83 acres has a logistic advantage being close to the beach. “In my view, it should be allowed to continue as an open space for the public of Visakhapatnam. The land in question is ecologically sensitive and a portion of it is covered by CRZ restrictions,” he stated.

Sarma said going ahead with sale of such land constitutes a breach of the public trust and contempt of the apex court’s directions on the use of public lands and the decision taken by the present government to monetise the land is imprudent as there is an acute scarcity of such an open space in the heart of the city. Its value will be constantly appreciated. Commercialising such a valuable open space is against public interest, he remarked.

Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy after scrapping the GO issued by the TDP Government allotting the land in February 2019 had described it as a big scam. The ruling party said the land, part of which was acquired from CMR Group’s function hall to enable LuLu Group to have sea view and entry from beach road, was allotted at Rs4 lakh per acre.

Incidentally, LuLu Group had started civil work after laying the foundation stone for the ambitious project coinciding with the CII Partnership Summit held before the general elections in 2019. After cancellation of the deal by the new regime, the YSRCP Government also contemplated constructing 30 lakh sft of commercial space and later putting it up for sale.

There is no progress on subsequent proposals to auction the precious land through NBCC Limited, a Navaratna PSU, following protests by the Opposition parties and certain legal challenges. Subsequently, there was talk that the vacant site would be used for new buildings required for making Visakhapatnam the executive capital.

After the cancellation of allotment, LuLu Group announced that it will not invest in any project in AP under the present dispensation. The group also stated that construction of an international shopping mall, multiplex and five-star hotel with 220 rooms as part of the mixed use project would have given a global exposure to Visakhapatnam. The project was scheduled to be operational in 2022.

On the other hand, LuLu Group, which is in expansion mode, has come forward to invest Rs2,000 crore in a destination shopping mall and hyper market in Hyderabad. It has plans to invest an estimated Rs3,500 crore in retail, export and food processing business in Telangana.