How this Ananthapur man turned his dirty street into AP’s first smart street

Ananthapuram: Anil Kumar of Ananthapuram district looked at his dirty street and dreamed of turning it into a model street. At a minimal cost of Rs. 4 lakhs, he has transformed AG S Reddi street, with a population of 200 families, into Andhra Pradesh’s first smart street.

This street now has free WiFi access, a 2800 sq ft wall art, and cast iron benches from Jaipur. It took Anil 14 days to transform this street. The residents are delighted by the transformation, and the children are excited to occupy the benches under the trees every day.

With seven benches placed along the street, residents and commuters can use the WiFi facility, which is password protected.

The wall art predominantly focuses on blood donation, eye donation, saving trees and water, and empowering the girl child. There are also artworks supporting HIV-affected children. “I have used my savings to send a message that with citizen participation, a city can be transformed. I wanted to show the municipal authorities that for a street with 200 families, it takes Rs. 4 lakhs to bring about a great transformation,” said Anil.

Anil returned to his hometown town three years ago in 2019 and started “Discover Ananthapuram.” From restoring a 14th-century stepwell (koneru) in Kasi Visweswara Swamy Devalayam to giving away 26,000 bird nests under “Home for Birds,” Anil has many inspiring stories