Andhra unveils six ‘game changer’ policies, targets Rs 30 lakh cr investments

Chandrababu Naidu says the State is also hoping to get $10 billion in foreign direct investments

Amaravati: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu announced six ‘game changer’ policies in various sectors, including industries, MSMEs and food processing with an objective to create 20 lakh jobs in the State and said his government was looking at attracting Rs 30 lakh crore investment in the next five years.

Naidu said the State is also hoping to get $10 billion in foreign direct investments. He further said the Gross Value Addition (GVA) from the manufacturing sector which is pegged at Rs 3.4 lakh crore in 2024, would be taken to Rs 7.3 lakh crore by 2029, creating five lakh new jobs.

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Explaining the key initiatives in the policies, Naidu said the State is hoping to realise Rs 5 lakh crore out of the targeted Rs 30 lakh crore investment. He also said the exports from the State would be doubled to $40 billion from the existing $20 billion in 2024.

The Chief Minister announced the six policies as AP Industrial Development Policy 4.0, AP MSME & Entrepreneurship Development Policy 4.0, AP Food Processing Policy 4.0, AP Electronics Policy 4.0, AP Industrial Park Policy 4.0 and AP Integrated Clean Energy Policy 4.0.

“At a time we brought six policies. We exercised a lot on these six policies (and) we said only one thing in the polls (that creating) 20 lakh jobs is the goal of this government and we will work (towards it)… These six policies will be a game changer,” said Naidu, addressing a press conference at the Secretariat, following a Cabinet meeting.

Elaborating further, the CM said the USPs of the policies include a competitive incentive structure, encouraging home-grown global brands, product perfection, promoting decarbonisation of industries at a large scale and moving towards “speed of doing business”, among others.

“In the past (between 2014 and 2019) we had emerged as number one under ease of doing business (category) for four years. Now I am coining ‘speed of doing business’. We will work out how fast we can do it. Will eliminate multiple (windows) to set up a single desk on how to clear (proposals) as soon as possible under a single window,” he said.

Dedicated investment facilitation cell, assistance to foreign investors, integrated data management system and re-engineering of regulatory processes and procedures are the other features of “speed of doing business” concept, he said. Employment will be at the core of incentives, rewarding firms providing quality and high-quantity of employment, Naidu said.

To achieve target growth, Naidu identified 10 sustenance sectors such as automobiles, engineering, pharma and life sciences, metals & alloys, furniture and other focus sectors. He also identified an equal number of sectors as propelling ones which need an ecosystem, such as aerospace, defence & drones, toys, biotechnology, semiconductors & electronics, ship-building, specialty steel, electric vehicles & batteries and others.

According to Naidu, up to 75 per cent of investment will be offered as incentives to make MSME products price competitive. As part of AP Food Processing Policy 4.0, the CM observed that Rs 30,000 crore investments will be targeted to create three lakh new jobs and 30,000 new entrepreneurs, among others.

Likewise, AP Electronics Policy 4.0 aims to generate five lakh jobs, and attract Rs 84,000 crore investments with the Internet of Things (IoT), air conditioning, television, mobile, 5G communications and components as focus sub-sectors. Mega industries can receive up to 45 per cent incentives which include investment subsidy, employment subsidy, power subsidy, recruitment assistance and others.