Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy on Tuesday unveiled 'Vision Visakha', a roadmap for developing Visakhapatnam into a global metropolis and an economic growth engine to compete with cities like Hyderabad, Bengaluru and Chennai.
Envisioning an iconic secretariat building, stadium, convention centre, institute for emerging technologies and other futuristic initiatives, the chief minister noted that the port city can be pitched at a global scale to attract the world's eyeballs.
"What is the vision for Vizag? We need to have a 10-year vision. We would have to own the city and christen the city as the executive capital. We need to have a roadmap, which is workable. It cannot be a roadmap where we just dream big and yet achieve nothing," said Reddy, addressing a meeting here.
However, he noted that this vision cannot be realised by the state government alone and called for the participation of the Central government, private sector, public-private partnerships and other stakeholders to assume their roles.
According to the chief minister, Vizag just needs some "finishing touches", highlighting that the forthcoming greenfield Bhogapuram Airport and Mulapeta Port will form a horizontal growth corridor with it.
He also said that the city needs a Metro rail, resorts and other projects to catapult its stature while highlighting that he is also consulting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi to bring a couple of high speed rail corridors into Andhra Pradesh.
Moreover, Reddy reiterated that he would start living in Vizag post elections, a promise often repeated and yet to be realised over the past several months, and vowed that he would take oath for his next term in the city.
"I am assuring you, post elections, my stay would be in Vizag. In fact, my swearing-in ceremony would also be in Vizag. This is my commitment to the city," he said, releasing the vision document.
According to the 'Vision Visakha' document, the port city is expected to witness Rs 1 lakh crore worth of investments in the next five years on connectivity, industrial landscape, livability and social infrastructure, sustainability and climate resilience, and urban planning and city infrastructure.
Emphasising that Andhra Pradesh's services sector encompasses only 40 per cent of its GSDP, Reddy said it should be raised to the national average of 55 per cent.
He also noted that 39 per cent of the Rs 13 lakh crore investments inked through 352 deals in the 2023 Global Investor Summit have translated into reality.
Later, the chief minister launched Bhavita, a programme aimed at enhancing the skill development ecosystem to meet the growing needs of the industry.
Addressing students, Reddy said that Bhavita is a wholesome programme which converges industry and institutions like ITIs and polytechnic colleges.
He launched a web portal and a mobile app called AP Skill Universe to coordinate skill training and development programmes.
Besides Bhavita, the chief minister also inaugurated and laid the foundation for a slew of development projects worth Rs 1,500 crore.
