VISAKHAPATNAM: Aimed at making WiFi services available in all the panchayats in Andhra Pradesh, the State government entered into an agreement with Google India on the first day of the 24th edition of the CII Partnership Summit on Saturday. Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu said that all the 13,000 panchayats will be WiFi-enabled by the end of 2018. During a plenary session on ‘Sunrise Andhra Pradesh’, the Chief Minister said that once the project is ready, anybody can use technology to directly talk to him.
IT Minister Nara Lokesh, who spoke on the occasion, said that AP was the only State which has a readily available land bank to offer to the investors.The first day also saw the AP Capital Region Development Authority (CRDA) entering into an agreement with Italian firm ANAS International Enterprises SPA for an investment of Rs 7,000 crore towards the construction of Inner Ring Road (IRR) and other infrastructure in Amaravati.
Speaking to TNIE, CRDA Special Commissioner V Rama Manohara Rao said that MoUs worth Rs 35,000 crore are expected to be signed during the three-day summit.Meanwhile, the Andhra Pradesh Economic Development Board expects to sign MoUs worth Rs 1.2 lakh crore during the summit. The CEO of the board J Krishna Kishore said that focus was on automobile, tourism and electric vehicles.
A joint MoU between Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers, Automotive Components Manufacturers Association of India and the Andhra Pradesh Economic Development Board was also signed to promote manufacturing of automobile and auto components in the State.
EESL to supply 10,000 electric cars,17 lakh smart meters to AP
The Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL), a joint venture PSU under the Union Ministry of Power, has signed four MoUs with the Andhra Pradesh government, announcing an investment of Rs 3,730 crore.Spanning across e-mobility, energy efficiency and renewable energy, the projects will create more than 15,000 jobs and help the government save around Rs 3,185 crore on cost.
The MoUs were signed in the presence of Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, EESL Managing Director Saurabh Kumar and Energy Department Principal Secretary Ajay Jain on the inaugural day of the third edition of the CII Partnership Summit in Vizag on Saturday.
The MoUs entail supply of 10,000 electric cars and 4,000 chargers to various departments of the AP government through Non-conventional Energy Development Corporation of Andhra Pradesh Limited (NREDCAP), supply of around 17 lakh smart energy meters to APEPDCL and establishment of small solar PV-based power projects in phases.
“Andhra Pradesh has been a frontrunner in adopting advanced solutions related to energy efficiency and renewable power. We are honoured to be a partner in the State’s endeavours to adopt future-ready technology solutions like smart meters and e-vehicles,” said EESL MD Saurabh Kumar.
These pacts will provide opportunities to all the stakeholders for more innovation, transformation and transparency through cost-effective and scalable solutions, he added.
Going green
E-Mobility: The EESL will supply 10,000 electric vehicles and install 4,000 chargers in the government offices. The vehicles will be provided to govt departments on lease or outright purchase to replace the petrol and diesel vehicles
Solar PV-based power projects: The APSPDCL has signed an MoU with EESL for setting up small solar PV-based power projects in two phases -- a 150-MW plant at H650 cr and a 300-MW project at H1,300 crore
Smart meters: The EESL will supply APEPDCL and APSPDCL 17 lakh smart energy meters. The project aims at increasing the discoms’ revenues through high billing efficiency and low O&M cost