AP aims for 15% growth next fiscal

The Andhra Pradesh government is aiming to achieve 15 per cent growth in 2016-17.

Ahead of the Collectors’ Conference in December, at a meeting with Secretaries and heads of department at the Secretariat here on Saturday, Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu said efforts were on to synchronise the functioning of various departments and bring in accountability in all the departments. “This will help achieve double-digit growth,” he said.

Referring to the recent rain havoc in Nellore, Chittoor and Kadapa districts, the Chief Minister stressed the need to increase the storage capacity of water tanks.

In a bid to promote crop cultivation during dry spells and to improve the declining groundwater levels in 5,000 villages, the Chief Minister said a new farm pond scheme will mitigate dry spells and drought condition in the State.

Expressing satisfaction that agriculture and allied sectors performed well in this quarter, Naidu called for strengthening horticulture and fisheries for better results. He has called for an analysis of economic, health, social and regulatory indicators.

“Due to planned networking and timely response by officials and district collectors, we were able to get ₹2,800 crore subsidy from the Centre. This was a learning experience for all the departments,” he added.

Stressing on establishing a multi-pronged approach to strengthen skill development in the State, the Chief Minister suggested appointing an agency to evaluate the State’s position in skill management.

The Chief Minister favoured the setting up of labs as done in Malaysia to monitor the performance of departments and sectors in the government.

State Ministers, members from 150 government departments, 33 Secretaries, 20 ministries and local administrative agencies attended the meeting, according to a statement.

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