Jennifer Larson, Consul General, U.S. Consulate General, Hyderabad, said that the U.S. and India are aiming to launch the joint NISAR satellite from Andhra Pradesh in a few weeks. There will be Tiger Triumph exercise off the A.P. coast in less than a month, she added.
She was in the city on Friday to take part in the CII Visakhapatnam’s conference on “Destination Visakhapatnam: The Growth Hub of India”, at a hotel here.
Addressing the gathering, Ms. Larson said that bilateral relations between India and the U.S. are quite good. This is the reason behind many successful joint projects and programmes. Vizag plays a critical part in the deal to transfer critical U.S. military technology to help the indigenisation of the Indian defence manufacturing sector.
Rapid urbanisation
‘’Vizag is poised to become an economic powerhouse for India’s eastern coast. The pace and scale of India’s past and future urbanisation is simply staggering. India’s cities have added 100 million new residents over the past 10 years, and in the next 10 years, 200 million more Indians will have moved into cities, bringing the urban population to some 600 million – nearly twice the current population of the United States. It is cities like Visakhapatnam that will absorb the potential immigrants to India’s urban centres,’‘ she said.
P.P. Lalkrishna, Chairman, CII Visakhapatnam, said that the city stands tall as a beacon of progress, notably chosen under “The Growth Hub Programme” by NITI Aayog. ‘‘This initiative underscores our commitment to fostering robust economic growth, aligning with India’s vision to achieve a $5 trillion economy by 2025.’‘ With its diverse investment landscape and conducive environment, the city is a destination for forward looking investors seeking to be part of India’s transformative journey, he added.
G.S. Siva Kumar, past Chairman, CII Andhra Pradesh, said the Visakhapatnam ports handle 33.14 million tonnes of cargo and ranked the third in India. The three industrial corridors centered in Vishakhapatnam are set to significantly boost industrial output.
Earlier, M. Lakshmi Prasad, Chairman, CII Andhra Pradesh, announced new office-bearers of CII Visakhapatnam Zone for the year 2024-25 — Grandhi Rajesh, managing partner, Integral Trading & Logistics, is the Chairman, and V. Ajay Kumar, managing director, Vijay Nirman Company Pvt. Ltd., Vice-Chairman.
