VISAKHAPATNAM: Taking strong exception to the YSRC allegations on the privatisation of Visakhapatnam Steel Plant (VSP), Minister for Human Resources Development and IT, Nara Lokesh said, “We will not allow the privatisation of Visakha Steel.”
Speaking to newsmen after the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Infrastructure Summit in Visakhapatnam on Wednesday, the IT Minister labelled the allegations as a false propaganda and asserted that the YSRC is misusing the issue for political mileage.
Pointing out that significant industrialists and financiers have come together to discuss major investments in the State after five years, Lokesh said that the focus is on the future development of Visakhapatnam, infrastructure projects, and improving connectivity, particularly the road and metro links to Bhogapuram Airport. “During previous tenure, the TDP government had already identified focus areas for each district as part of decentralised development. While several investments were made earlier, others stalled during YSRC’s tenure. Now, we are now planning on the revival of these halted projects,” he explained.
Slamming the previous dispensation for neglecting basic infrastructure such as roads and driving industrialists away, the IT Minister expressed the need to reignite economic activity by attracting large-scale investments. “Our goal is to create 20 lakh jobs, with specific incentives for companies that generate employment,” he revealed.
The Minister revealed that a prominent IT company is preparing to employ 1,500 people, with plans to create 20,000 jobs in the next five years, and announced the launch of a new IT policy and Global Capability Centre (GCC) within 100 days. Lokesh reiterated his commitment to transforming Vizag into the State’s economic capital, with accelerated efforts on the Visakha-Chennai industrial corridor. He announced the forthcoming release of new industrial, IT, and electronics policies aimed at creating job-friendly environments and expressed appreciation for the GMR Group’s contributions to infrastructure development.