Andhra CM meets Amit Shah seeks Centre's support for state's projects

     New Delhi, Jul 15 (PTI) Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Tuesday met Union Home Minister Amit Shah and sought the Centre's continued support for various state projects while highlighting the acute financial resource crunch the state is facing.
     During the 45-minute meeting at Shah's residence here, Naidu expressed gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Shah and the central government for appointing senior Telugu Desam Party (TDP) leader and former Union minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju as Governor of Goa.
     The chief minister briefed Shah about the urgent need for financial support for various development projects and programmes in the state. He thanked the Centre for its support during challenging times over the past year, noting that the state is working to rebuild its "shattered economy" with central assistance, according to an official statement.
     However, Naidu emphasised that Andhra Pradesh continues to face severe financial resource constraints and urged the Centre to extend further support.
     He informed the home minister that Andhra Pradesh has requested the 16th Finance Commission to consider the financial losses suffered by it due to bifurcation while allocating funds.
     A key focus of the discussions was the Polavaram-Banakacherla Link project, which Naidu described as critical for supplying water to drought-affected areas in the state. The project proposes to divert 200 TMC (thousand million cubic feet) of floodwater from Polavaram to the Banakacherla regulator in Kurnool district.
     The chief minister explained that completion of this interlinking project would significantly benefit the drought-prone Rayalaseema region.
     He told Shah that even after meeting the requirements of the upper and lower riparian states, surplus water from the Godavari river continues to flow steadily for about 90 to 120 days.
     Naidu stressed that as the last state on the river's course, Andhra Pradesh has the rightful claim to fully utilise this surplus water from the Godavari.
     Earlier in the day, NITI Aayog member V K Saraswat met Naidu at his Delhi residence to discuss establishing aerospace and defence industries in Andhra Pradesh.
     The chief minister informed Saraswat that the government plans to set up defence industries in the Rayalaseema region. They discussed the region's suitability for such industries and the steps needed to attract investments in this sector.
     Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) Managing Director Dr Vikas Kumar also met the chief minister to discuss cooperation for metro projects in Visakhapatnam and Vijayawada.
     Naidu called on the Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw at the latter's residence here and consoled him on the demise of his father Daulal Vaishnaw, who passed away on July 8. The chief minister paid his tributes to late Daulal Vaishnaw.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)