Singapore to participate in Andhra Pradesh's development projects

SINGAPORE: Singapore has expressed strong interest to participate in several development projects in Andhra Pradesh, Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu said here today after a series of meetings with ministers, officials and businessmen of this country.

"They have shown interest to prepare master plans," he said on the last day of his three-day visit.

"We will work together on project-by-project basis," he told PTI when asked about Singapore partnering in development of his state.

Naidu said his government would also be offering some of the best incentives given by Indian states to foreign investors.

While delivering a keynote address on business opportunities in Andhra Pradesh at the Institute of South Asian Studies' (ISAS) ninth International conference on "The States of South Asia", he said that his state would undergo accelerated development, especially after the bifurcation.

"We aim to be among the top three states in India by 2022 and as the top performing sate by 2029," he told delegates at the conference.

He further highlighted the growing competition among Indian states to woo investments.

"Greater reliance on market allocation of capital investments gives rise to competition among states that are unequally equipped and endowed to leverage it," he said.

"This will give rise to a healthy competitive federalism. I believe that states should have a healthy competition and complement each other in the process of nation building and raise the standards of living of our people," he said.

Yesterday, the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister had called on Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong and discussed potential collaboration in urban development.

He also held meetings and discussions with Foreign Affairs and Minister for Law K Shanmugam, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance Tharman Shanmugaratnam and Home Affairs and Trade and Industry S Iswaran.

Singapore would seriously study projects in Andhra Pradesh, said Padma Shri Ambassador Gopinath Pillai, chairman of the Institute of South Asian Studies.

"We take his proposal very seriously. He has given us his priority development - infrastructure, technical training, (and) the development of tourism," he his on Naidu's visit to Singapore.

"All these three are interesting projects," he added.