Kadapa was either known for factionists’ war cry or the drought-hit farmers’ outcry. The semi-arid tracts in the heartland of Rayalaseema are undergoing a drastic change from being a neglected land to an industrial hub.
The laying of the foundation stone for the integrated steel plant of Rayalaseema Steel Corporation Limited by Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu at M. Kambaladinne in Mylavaram mandal recently came as a much-needed shot in the arm for the industrial sector, which was undergoing a lull for quite some time.
With a proposed investment of ₹20,000 crore and a committed direct employment of 10,000 people, the plant, being established as a joint venture with Andhra Pradesh Mineral Development Corporation (APMDC), is coming up on 3,147 acres with an installed capacity of 3 MTA. The site’s location at the tri-junction of three districts, i.e., 15 km from Kurnool border and a mere 5 km from Anantapur border, makes its ecosystem expand over to the neighbouring districts, extending employment and indirect livelihood opportunities.
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Post-June 2014, only three major industries came to Kadapa district —
Sri Govindaraja textiles, Bharathi Cements and Welspun Renewables. According to Kadapa District Industries Centre General Manager S. Chand Basha, the mineral-rich district is generally known for barytes and limestone-based industries. With nature bestowing bright sunshine and sweeping wind, there is, of late, growing preference for renewable power generation projects. The district received an impressive investment of ₹5,088 crore since June 2014, but could only create employment for a mere 4,068 persons. Since much of the investment flow was into solar and wind power generation projects in the vast tracts of dryland, the employment generation was far from proportionate.
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In Tirupati, the State government’s
focus changed from software to hardware over the last two years and the lands meant for the software industry were slowly diverted towards establishing electronics and hardware units, with the belief that they can churn out more jobs.
Industrial giants are slowly, yet steadily, settling in the Electronics Manufacturing Cluster-I and II spread across Renigunta and Yerpedu mandals and located behind the Tirupati international airport. With high sodium content in the hard-to-till soil, this area used to be a farmer’s nightmare and as such hundreds of acres remained dry.
They are now being put to alternative use, with the arrival of multinational industrial units. The cluster now boasts of hosting prominent companies that are into producing mobile phones, televisions, LED screens and a host of allied products associated with the information and communication sectors.