Planning Commission of India Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia has evinced keen interest in the AP government’s initiatives - Bangaru Thalli and Bangaru Kalalu (SC and ST Sub Plan) - while approving the state’s plan budget for Rs 53,000 crore for 2013-14. This is an increase of 8.2 per cent over the plan budget of last year (2012-13) which was for Rs 49,000 cr.
Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy, speaking to mediapersons at Delhi after conferring with Ahluwalia on Thursday, said that this apart the total outlay for the state in the 12th plan period, as communicated to him, was Rs 3.42 lakh crore which was the highest for any state in the entire country.
The chief minister said that when Ahluwalia wanted to know how Bangaru Thalli programme, meant for providing security to girl-child, could be implemented, he told him that he was proposing to accord legal immunity to the scheme to ensure that it cannot be discontinued in future. He had explained to him how he had insulated SC and ST sub-plan funds from being diverted to other programmes by bringing in a legislation.
As regards the projects taken up under Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), he said he had sought Rs 2,500 crore for this year (2013-14) and Rs 20,000 crore for JNNURM phase -II which will begin in 2014.
The chief minister said he had explained to Ahluwalia that the state’s economy was looking up. The growth in the state’s GSDP was 5.29 per cent as against the all-India average of 4.9 pc. Even in per capita income, the state was leading - it was Rs 77,277 as against the national average of Rs 68,747.
The chief minister said that it was proposed to bring down poverty level to 12 percent by 2016-17 from 21 percent (2009-10). In the 12th plan period, the overall growth rate of the state economy was expected to reach 10 percent. Among the sectors, six percent growth was envisaged in agriculture, 10.5 pc in industry and 11.5 pc in service sectors, Reddy said.
He had apprised the deputy chairman how the state was addressing issues related to people at micro level.
As regards Pranahita Chevella and Polavaram, he said he had urged the deputy chairman to recommend to the government to declare them as national projects. The file related to Pranahita Chevella investment clearance was pending with the Centre. “I wanted him to recommend to the Centre to clear both the projects,” the chief minister said.
As Ahluwalia is a member of the Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) on gas, Reddy said he had requested him to ensure higher gas allocation to ease power supply problem.
