The Visakhapatnam-Chennai industrial corridor project mentioned by the Union Finance Minister in the Budget has generated interest among investors and raised the hopes of the public, though it is not a new proposal.
In fact, originally, the proposal was made by the previous UPA Government and it was even mentioned in the AP Reorganisation Bill as a sop to the Seemandhra region.
Jairam Ramesh, former union minister, used to make frequent announcements that the proposed corridor would attract investments to the extent of Rs 1 lakh crore over the next decade or so, what with the tax incentives being given by the Union Government to the successor state of Andhra Pradesh.
However, the Union Finance Minister's specific commitment to the project in the Budget has triggered hopes, as the major corridor running through the seven coastal districts of AP - Visakhapatnam, East Godavari, West Godavari, Krishna, Guntur, Prakasam and Nellore - and culminating in Chennai would be of immense benefit to the state.
The other industrial corridor - Chennai-Bangalore - will also cover the district of Nellore, and two Rayalaseema districts in AP, but its impact would be limited. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley mentioned that Krishnapatnam in Nellore district would be developed as an industrial smart city as a part of Chennai-Bangalore corridor.
Industrial clusters
Several industrial clusters are likely to come up in the seven coastal districts of AP as a part of the project and the Union Finance Minister specifically mentioned the development of Kakinada port in East Godavari district and the proposal to develop a hardware cluster in the region based on the port.
Earlier this week, a team from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) visited the Visakhapatnam port, Gangavaram port and other industrial projects here to conduct a preliminary study and it is expected that the team may submit a report by October after visiting other important places in the State.
“They took inputs from us on cargo handled by us and our projections for future,” Visakhapatnam Port Deputy Chairman and CII Vizag zone Chairman, G.V.L. Satya Kumar, said.
Experts from PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and John Arnold, an Independent Consultant working under the guidance of Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), Union Ministry of Commerce & Industry, also met Visakhapatnam Port Chairman M.T. Krishna Babu and senior officials from AP State Special Economic Zone, Jawaharlal Nehru Pharma City and AP Industrial Infrastructure Corporation during the visit. There is speculation that the ADB might support the project by becoming a key partner.