Bhogapuram Airport, Vizag: Jagan’s Efforts, Chandrababu’s Credit Chori Exposed

The YSR Congress Party launched a scathing attack on Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu and the ruling coalition, accusing them of shamelessly indulging in “credit theft” over the Bhogapuram International Airport — a project the party says was largely executed during the tenure of former Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy.

Addressing the media at the YSRCP city office in Visakhapatnam, YSRCP district president KK Raju said the coalition government is attempting to rewrite facts and appropriate credit for work it did not do. From land acquisition and statutory clearances to agreements and major construction milestones, he asserted, the bulk of progress was achieved between 2019 and 2024 under YS Jagan’s leadership.

Raju said YS Jagan personally monitored the project, pushing through a comprehensive master plan that included a 70-metre-wide main access road linking Visakhapatnam to the airport. “The groundwork—planning, approvals, land, timelines—was completed during YS Jagan’s tenure. Those who arrived late are now trying to claim the spotlight,” he charged.

Calling out Naidu’s earlier claims, Raju pointed out that when the TDP chief laid the foundation stone years ago, only 377 acres had been acquired—far short of what is required for a greenfield international airport. It was only after YS Jagan took office in 2019, he said, that the project was put on a fast track: agreements were finalised in 2020, land acquisition began in 2021, NOCs were secured in 2022, acquisition concluded by January 2023, and construction commenced on May 3, 2023, with a clear completion target of June 2026.

Raju also tore into the coalition government for what he described as “criminal neglect” of airport connectivity. Despite the master plan clearly providing for a 70-metre-wide access road, he said, the present regime has failed to even prepare a DPR or obtain alignment approvals. The result, he warned, is chaos—passengers are forced to rely on a single, congested route, with traffic bottlenecks peaking at the Anandapuram junction.

Questioning Union Civil Aviation Minister K. Ram Mohan Naidu, Raju asked how an international airport can function without a proper approach road. “While doing nothing on the ground, coalition leaders are busy peddling falsehoods to mislead the people of North Andhra and project themselves as the architects of Bhogapuram,” he alleged.

The YSRCP leader concluded by saying the facts are on record and warned that attempts to distort the project’s history would not stand scrutiny. “People know who built Bhogapuram—and who is merely trying to steal the credit,” he said.