Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu will chair a cabinet meeting on Thursday afternoon where significant decisions are expected to be made. The cabinet will also approve the vote-on-account budget to be presented in the assembly for the next three months. Following Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s budget speech, which allocated substantial resources to Andhra Pradesh, Chief Minister Chandrababu expressed his satisfaction. He conveyed optimism that better days are ahead for Amaravati, suggesting that had the capital already been developed, an additional Rs 3 lakh crore of public wealth would have been generated.
Chandrababu highlighted the necessity of loans by previous administrations and noted that 72 percent of the Polavaram project has been completed. He extended his gratitude to the Finance Minister for her commitment in the Union Budget 2024 to expedite the completion of Polavaram. Chandrababu criticized the delays and disruptions caused by changes in contractors and officials, which he claims have hindered the project’s timely completion, originally scheduled for 2020-21.
Emphasizing the importance of Polavaram as the lifeline for Andhra Pradesh and its farmers, Chandrababu underscored its critical role in India’s food security. Finance Minister Sitharaman assured that steps would be taken to ensure the swift completion of the Polavaram project. Additionally, she promised a special package for the backward regions of Andhra Pradesh, including Rayalaseema, Prakasam, and North Andhra districts.
The Finance Minister outlined plans for special assistance for industrial development in line with the bifurcation act. This includes support for nodes along the Visakhapatnam-Chennai industrial corridor and the allocation of funds for the development of water, electricity, roads, and highways for the Kopparthi and Orvakallu industrial centers. Specifically, funds will be directed to Kopparthi in the Visakhapatnam-Chennai corridor and Orvakallu in the Hyderabad-Bengaluru corridor.