The cancellation of Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu’s scheduled meeting with the local entrepreneurs and people’s representatives at The Gateway Hotel here on Tuesday disappointed the delegates of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), Andhra Chamber of Commerce and Industry Federation and top executives of various companies.
A sizeable number of them came to the venue to get an idea of the government’s plans for industrial development in the State and discuss issues involved therein. But, they were left high and dry as the programme, scheduled to commence at 1 p.m., was announced cancelled at around 4.15 p.m.
However, the Chief Minister touched down the Gannavaram airport on his way to Tirupati from Visakhapatnam, where he held a brief consultation with the industrialists, along with Singapore Minister for Trade and Industry S. Iswaran.
The aerial survey of the Capital region was also called off as Mr. Naidu and guests from Singapore were to participate in a programme at Tirumala at 6 p.m. It was a long wait for entrepreneurs and media personnel who expected the Chief Minister to explain what the government was exactly planning for establishment of industries, but in vain.
It was also agonizing wait for the large number of policemen who were deployed in and around the hotel well in advance. Only Vijayawada MP Kesineni Srinivas and MLAs Gadde Rammohan Rao and Bonda Umamaheswara Rao and Zilla Parishad Chairperson Gadde Anuradha were seen taking care of the arrangements till the news of cancellation came in.
The meeting, scheduled to commence at 1 p.m., was cancelled at around 4.15 p.m