Tower design for Assembly building approved

Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu gave his approval to the design of the Legislative Assembly building from two options at a meeting with the officials of the A.P.-Capital Region Development Authority (CRDA) and representatives of the Foster+Partners (F+P), in which film director S.S. Rajamouli had made some suggestions on giving a cultural dimension.

A tower having the Assembly hall on the ground floor and other facilities above, which include space from where visitors could have a bird’s eye view of the capital region, was what the CM had chosen. The second design is a square-shaped structure.

However, the CRDA will seek feedback from the public on both the designs, on the basis of which a final decision will be taken by duly factoring in the suggestions given by Mr. Rajamouli.

He gave a presentation on the historic backdrop of Andhra Pradesh starting from its prominence as a hub of maritime trade centuries ago to its makeover as a Sunrise State.

There will be yet another round of deliberations on the designs of the iconic government buildings in the ‘Amaravati Deep Dive Workshop’ being conducted by the CRDA in the city on December 14 and 15.

According to an official release, the Assembly design includes a viewing tower and a museum, with the complex spread over 17 lakh square feet.

The F+P team had also submitted a revised design of the High Court Complex which derives its features from a Buddhist monument.

Mr. Rajamouli told the media that the majority of the participants in Wednesday’s meeting had voted for the tower design and another one for which he submitted the images of the Telugu history, language and cultural aspects to the F+P was set aside. It could be used for the proposed cultural city or the media city.

Mr. Rajamouli said his concept to install a statue of ‘Telugu Talli’ in the Assembly hall with the rays from rising sun falling on it was unanimously approved.

“At the beginning of this exercise, I helped in documenting the aspirations of the Chief Minister, who wanted the building to be a show-piece of Indian-ness and one that reflects the richness of Telugu history and culture. Now, I provided images asked by the F+P. Otherwise, my contribution is as little as that of the squirrels in the construction of the Rama Sethu,” he said.