AP to launch Ambedkar's 125th birth anniversary celebrations

Andhra Pradesh government will launch a year-long celebration of B R Ambedkar's 125th birth anniversary here tomorrow.
Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu will kick off the celebrations by laying foundation stone of a new housing programme for the weaker sections of the society at Jakkampudi near here, said AP Scheduled Castes Welfare Corporation Chairman Jupudi Prabhakar.
Under the programme six lakh houses would be built at a cost of Rs 2.5 lakh each across the state, he said.
The Sports Authority of Andhra Pradesh would organise Ambedkar Divya Jyoti Yatra from Tummalapalli Kalakshetram to Benz Circle, in which 125 youths would participate. The CM would receive the jyoti and later take part in a state function at a Convention Centre, Jupudi said.

As part of the celebrations, the state government would also build a 125-ft tall statue of the architect of Indian Constitution at Amaravati, the state's upcoming capital city, he said.
An Ambedkar Smriti Vanam would be built on a 15-acre site at Amaravati which would include a memorial park, convention centre, a Buddhist Dhyanan Kendram and a library. Rs 210 crore has been earmarked for the project.
"Buddhism flourished in the Amaravati region and it will be a befitting tribute to Ambedkar, who converted to Buddhism, that a memorial park is being developed here," Jupudi said.