Jagan slams Naidu for stealing credit for Hyderabad’s rise, says YSR, KCR laid real foundation
YS Jagan Mohan Reddy accused N Chandrababu Naidu of taking credit for Hyderabad’s IT growth and the Visakhapatnam Google-Adani Data Centre. He emphasised that these achievements were initiated by YSRCP and YSR, not Naidu, and highlighted the ecosystem built around these projects
Tadepalli: Former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Wednesday launched a sharp attack on his successor N Chandrababu Naidu, accusing him of habitually taking credit for others’ achievements, from Hyderabad’s IT growth to Visakhapatnam’s data centre project.
Pointing to Naidu’s repeated claims about Hyderabad’s development, Jagan said the TDP leader had earlier taken credit for the Cyber Towers in Madhapur, which was actually initiated by former Chief Minister N Janardhan Reddy.
“The real IT revolution came under Dr YS Rajasekhara Reddy between 2004 and 2009, when projects like the Outer Ring Road, PVNR Expressway and GMR International Airport were completed,” he said, adding that Hyderabad’s emergence as an IT powerhouse was driven by YSR and later expanded by K Chandrashekhar Rao after he became the first Chief Minister of Telangana.
“Under YSR, IT exports rose from Rs 5,660 crore in 2003-2004 to Rs 32,509 crore in 2008-2009, and by 2014 reached Rs 57,000 crore. Today, Telangana’s IT exports stand at Rs 2 lakh crore, a legacy built by YSR and KCR, not Chandrababu Naidu,” Jagan said.
Turning to the Visakhapatnam project, he accused Naidu of misleading the public by projecting the Google-Adani Data Centre as a TDP initiative. “In November 2020, during the pandemic, our government allotted land to Adani Group to set up a 300 MW Data Centre in Visakhapatnam. The foundation stone was formally laid on May 3, 2023,” he said.
Jagan said the Subsea Cable Project linking Singapore and Visakhapatnam, a 3,900-km undersea data corridor, was also initiated by the YSRCP government. “The subsea cable carries the data. Without it, no data centre can exist,” he said, pointing out that the project was a joint effort of the YSRCP government, the Centre, the Singapore Government and the Adani Group.
“What is being shown today as the Google Data Centre is only an expansion of that original Adani project,” he asserted, citing official correspondence and media reports showing that the Google-Adani partnership was in place long before Naidu took office.
“Adani is investing Rs 87,000 crore, one of India’s largest private investments in data infrastructure. Yet Chandrababu doesn’t mention Adani or our government once. Giving credit where it’s due would expose the truth,” he said.
Jagan said the YSRCP government’s agreement with Adani was designed to create a wider ecosystem. “We knew data centres create limited direct jobs but generate massive opportunities around them. That’s why our agreement included 25,000 new jobs, an IT park, skill colleges and recreation centres. We thought beyond one project. We built an entire ecosystem,” he said.
“Visakhapatnam’s transformation is the result of YSRCP’s vision, not Naidu’s slogans,” Jagan asserted. “Adani is building the structure, Google is adding the technology and YSRCP built the foundation. Chandrababu’s only contribution is publicity.”