Leaders of all political parties will gather at a workshop being organised by the Uttarandhra Charcha Vedika on May 21 at AU Platinum Jubilee Seminar Hall to discuss about the backwardness of North Andhra and articulate the aspirations of the people of the region.
Lok Satta founder N. Jayaprakash Narayan, APCC president N. Raghuveera Reddy, CPI(M) State secretary P. Madhu and his CPI counterpart K. Ramakrishna have confirmed their participation. TDP, BJP and YSR Congress leaders have also been invited, former Minister Konathala Ramakrishna has said.
“It is the first phase of the consultation process, after which a district-level meeting would be held, micro-level problems identified and an action plan worked out for the development of North Andhra,” Mr. Ramakrishna told the media here on Friday.
One of the major reasons for the backwardness was the presence of only about 10 lakh acres under assured irrigation as against the potential of 30 lakh acres, he said.
Of the 200 tmc ft of water, 100 tmc ft was going waste. This apart, in the last 15 years, only ₹1,000 crore was spent on various irrigation projects such as Jhanjhavati and Vamsadhara, he pointed out.
Thrust areas
To spur development in the region, he said it was essential to take up the Uttarandhra Sujala Sravanthi, establish girijan university, grant railway zone to Visakhapatnam, implement the Forest Rights Act to hand over land to girijans, develop VIMS as AIIMS, and develop satellite ports at Bhavanapadu or Nakkapalli.
In the GSDP, Srikakulam and Vizianagarm lagged behind, and though Visakhapatnam was leading, rural areas were not part of it, the former Minister said. On the education front, Srikakulam and Vizianagaram were in 12th and 11th positions respectively.
Funds, employment, and availability of water held the key for the development of the region, he said.
In proportion to its population of 19%, a sum of ₹25,000 crore to ₹30,000 crore of the State’s ₹1.57 lakh crore budget should be spent on the region, he added.
Former UPSC member K.S. Chalam said Andhra Pradesh accounted for 29 SEZs, the highest in the country, and most of them were located in the North Andhra region. Utilising the waters of about 20 rivers that dotted the region, North Andhra could be turned into an agriculturally rich region as envisaged by the former Chief Engineer, C.R.M. Patnaik.
Ironically, 15-20 lakh people migrated from 3,000 villages owing to neglect of agriculture, he said. The Godavari water, which rightfully belonged to the region, was being taken to Kurnool and Anantapur and to replenish Kolleru, he added.
Icchapuram, with lowest per capita income, was in North Andhra, he said.
Former BJP city president P.V. Narayana Rao was present.
