The Partnership Summit is scheduled to be held from the 14th to the 15th of this month in Visakhapatnam. About 300 industrialists and dignitaries from 45 countries are expected. Education, IT, and Electronics Minister Nara Lokesh said 410 agreements will be signed during the event. These are expected to bring in investments worth ₹9.8 lakh crore and create about 7.5 lakh jobs.
Foundation stones will be laid for industries with proposed investments of ₹2.7 lakh crore and creation of 2.5 lakh jobs during the summit. Lokesh, after conducting a high-level review meeting on the arrangements on Monday, spoke to reporters at the Undavalli camp office on this and other priority areas for the summit. Ministers Kondapalli Srinivas, Gottipati Ravikumar, Kollu Ravindra and Industries Secretary Yuvraj were also present.
Lokesh said that Andhra Pradesh had already attracted ₹10 lakh crore of investments during the coalition government. According to him, the state was not only at the forefront in terms of domestic investments but also in the FDI. The Visakhapatnam summit would chalk out the changes that were expected in the next decade in the industrial sector, the role of India and the contribution of Andhra Pradesh. He added that the government was planning to create 20 lakh jobs and all the ministers were striving towards achieving that goal.
Growth Strategy and Industrial Environment of Andhra Pradesh
Lokesh said the state's progress needs harmony among the government, industry and general public. He said under the leadership of Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, Andhra Pradesh has emerged as a favourite investment destination and because of the "speed of doing business" policies laid down by the government.
Despite intense competition from other neighboring states, Andhra Pradesh is still managing to attract key companies. Companies like Google have invested in the state through coordination between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Naidu. The central government also approved an investment of ₹1 lakh crore by ArcelorMittal in the state.
Balanced regional development and infrastructure decentralization are the objectives of the government. Overall, six gigawatt data centers are to be set up across the state with support from green energy systems. Andhra Pradesh is also collaborating with international universities such as James Cook University for aqua research in the Godavari districts and Griffith University on sports development. Solar cell and quantum technology projects are under discussion with Australian institutions. Foundation-laying and inaugurals for several of those will be held this month.
AI-based skill development and job matching:
The state will soon launch a skill portal, which assesses the candidate's skills and matches them with industry requirements. The assessments would range from bike mechanics to quantum engineers through artificial intelligence technology, and enable unemployed workers to connect directly with potential employers.
Principle of Continuous Development He underlined that development requires time and collective contribution of all sections. He announced the contributions made by all sectors, including companies belonging to opposition parties. Lokesh also pointed out that states enjoying political stability were achieving steady progress. He said Andhra Pradesh had been facing a lot of problems in the previous regime, whereas now the state was again on track with regard to industrial development. The policies that were drafted earlier were being reviewed as they were against people's interest, he explained. Lokesh further stated that the Centre had given ₹ 13,000 crore as subsidy for Visakhapatnam Steel Plant, apart from State Government having share in that company. Better management was required in future without which it cannot sustain.
