On a day Chandrababu Naidu took over as the first chief minister of the residual state of Andhra Pradesh, Prime Minister Narendra Modi promised to “extend all possible help to the people and the government of Andhra Pradesh”.
Conveying his best wishes to the TDP chief and his team in developing the state, Modi tweeted on Sunday, “Chandrababugaru’s administrative experience & commitment to development will be a great asset in taking Andhra Pradesh to newer heights.”
Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley is discussing the financial package TDP has been demanding for supporting Andhra Pradesh. It will be reflected in Union budget that the NDA government has present by the end of the next month.
“The Union government is committed to support the state for its comprehensive growth. The government of Andhra Pradesh is facing financial deficit after bifurcation and it is the duty of the Union government to support the AP government financially by allocating funds through budget," Union Parliamentary Affairs and Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah Naidu told reporters in Vijayawada.
After carving out Telangana, the Andhra Pradesh is staring at a revenue deficit of Rs 13,579 crore. Apart from that, the government has promised premier educational institutes, including IIM, IIT, NIT and a central university to compensate for the academic centres lost to Telangana due to bifurcation.
The public exchequer will face a huge burden given that the TDP chief had promised, during polls, of waving farm and other loans that comes to around Rs 80,000 crore. Union Minister Venkaiah Naidu has also written letters to ministries flagging the issues of the Andhra Pradesh that need to be taken up on priority.
Though this time provisions would be made in the budget as a special measure, the allocation for AP from the next financial year will be decided by the finance commission.
Published 08 June 2014, 18:57 IST