The Communist Party of India (CPI) has favoured a special package for 10 years for Seemandhra. The CPI organised a meeting on ‘Comprehensive development of the residual State of Andhra Pradesh’ here on Tuesday. Party State secretary K. Narayana said that the governments should aim at inclusive growth in the Seemandhra regions.
The development was minimal in other states that were given special packages, he said.
“For instance, only 58,000 jobs were created in Jammu and Kashmir, 95,000 in Himachal Pradesh and 1.60 lakh in Uttarakhand,” he observed.
The government investment in these states was also minimal.
Exemption from excise, income tax, etc would be given only for 5 years, which was not sufficient for development of industry. So, the government should announce a package for 10 years, and if required extend it in future, he added.
The meeting adopted a resolution for comprehensive development in 13 districts of the residual State. Completion of Polavaram project and rehabilitation and Resettlement (R&R) package for the displaced, linking of Krishna and Godavari basins, completion of pending projects should immediate priorities of the government to meet irrigation and drinking water requirements in Rayalaseema and Coastal Andhra districts, he said.
The other demands include setting up industrial corridor from Srikakulam to Chennai; tribal university in Srikakulam; development of jute, manganese and granite industries at Vizianagaram; declaring Visakhapatnam as Export Processing Zone and setting up of IT park and pharma city; Establishment of petro corridor and development of Kakinada port; Aqua university and Aqua processing zone in West Godavari district; agri-based industries in Vijayawadal; creation of new Andhra Pradesh railway zone by delinking Visakhapatnam division from East Coast Railway; Medical University at Kurnool; development of religious tourism at Tirupati, Kalahasti and Kanipakam.
