Naidu meets Modi, seeks more sops for AP
HYDERABAD: At at time when the Union government is preparing its annual budget for the next financial year, Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu requested prime minister Narendra Modi on Sunday to allocate more funds and projects to the reorganised state to fulfil the promises made to the state in the AP Reorganisation Act, 2014.
Naidu submitted a long list of 'desired things' to Modi. The chief minister, who was in Delhi on Sunday to take part in several private programmes and marriage receptions including that of Jay Shah, son of BJP president Amit Shah, met Modi in the evening.
During the 30-minute-long meeting, he tried to convince Modi of the need to accord special-category status to Andhra Pradesh as promised by the erstwhile UPA government during the bifurcation of undivided AP.
'AP is passing through a grave financial crisis post-bifurcation as the economic powerhouse, Hyderabad city, was given to Telangana. Hence, according special status to AP will make the reorganised state attract investors to set up industries in it so that its revenue will increase,' Naidu explained to the prime minister.
After submitting a memorandum, Naidu requested Modi to announce more incentives and tax concessions in the Union Budget for 2015-16 for the investors who come forward to set up industries in AP.
According to sources, stating that the recent financial package announced by the Centre for Andhra Pradesh was not at all sufficient to the cash-starved state to overcome financial crisis, Naidu urged Modi to allocate more funds to the state at least in the ensuing Union budget.
Since the central government had already rejected the State government's plea for the release of `20,000 crore for construction of capital, Naidu is learnt to have tried to convince the prime minister to grant generous financial aid to the state to undertake construction.
Besides requesting Modi to ensure that all assurances given to AP in the AP Reorganisation Act, 2014 were fulfilled, Naidu also urged Modi to release some more funds to the state to bridge the gap between revenue and expenditure.
News Posted: 16 February, 2015
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