<p>Hyderabad: Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has directed officials to develop the 'Visakha Economic Region' as the growth engine of Andhra Pradesh, aiming for a $120 billion economy from this region by 2032. He highlighted the need to transform Visakhapatnam into another Mumbai in the next seven years. </p><p>The Economic Region includes eight districts—Visakhapatnam, Vizianagaram, Srikakulam, Anakapalli, Kakinada, East Godavari, ASR, and Manyam—and the Chief Minister instructed officials to develop projects that will boost economic activity across this 8-district zone. He also ordered the identification of one lakh acres for various projects.</p><p>The Visakha Region spans 36,000 square kilometers and is home to a population of 15.5 million. </p><p>Its current GDP is around $49 billion. The Chief Minister noted that the region could generate 20 to 24 lakh jobs by 2032, making it crucial to the state's future growth.</p> .<p><strong>7 Growth Drivers Identified</strong></p><p>During a review meeting on Friday with NITI Aayog officials at the Secretariat in Amaravati, the Chief Minister discussed the development of the Visakhapatnam Economic Region. </p><p>He proposed development centered around 6 ports, 7 manufacturing nodes, 17 major agricultural zones, 6 service hubs, and 12 tourism hubs. NITI Aayog officials presented a detailed PowerPoint presentation. The officials outlined plans around seven growth drivers: ports, IT, agriculture, tourism, healthcare, urban development, and infrastructure. A total of 41 key projects are to be prioritized for implementation.</p><p>If these plans are realised within the next seven years, the region could see the construction of 7.5 lakh housing units, 10,000 hotel rooms, up to 20 innovation centers, 10 colleges, 7,000 hospital beds, industrial development across 20,000 hectares, 80 million sq. ft. of office space, and 60 million sq. ft. of warehousing capacity.</p> .<p>“We will develop beach roads from Mulapeta to Visakhapatnam and Visakhapatnam to Kakinada. These will be connected to national highways. The coast is a treasure trove—we must leverage it fully. Tourism is being treated as an industry, and our new policy is very investor-friendly. With future needs in mind, we will ensure continuous skill training for youth. We're adopting 'Work from Home' and Knowledge Economy outsourcing models. The goal is to provide work-from-home opportunities to 20 lakh people,” said the Chief Minister.</p><p>Developing Visakhapatnam as a steel hub in collaboration with the country’s top 3 steel firms; focus on petrochemicals, gas grid, port development, petrochem-medical tech, shipbuilding, defense, electronics, clean tech, and labor-intensive manufacturing were other issues that were discussed.</p>
<p>Hyderabad: Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has directed officials to develop the 'Visakha Economic Region' as the growth engine of Andhra Pradesh, aiming for a $120 billion economy from this region by 2032. He highlighted the need to transform Visakhapatnam into another Mumbai in the next seven years. </p><p>The Economic Region includes eight districts—Visakhapatnam, Vizianagaram, Srikakulam, Anakapalli, Kakinada, East Godavari, ASR, and Manyam—and the Chief Minister instructed officials to develop projects that will boost economic activity across this 8-district zone. He also ordered the identification of one lakh acres for various projects.</p><p>The Visakha Region spans 36,000 square kilometers and is home to a population of 15.5 million. </p><p>Its current GDP is around $49 billion. The Chief Minister noted that the region could generate 20 to 24 lakh jobs by 2032, making it crucial to the state's future growth.</p> .<p><strong>7 Growth Drivers Identified</strong></p><p>During a review meeting on Friday with NITI Aayog officials at the Secretariat in Amaravati, the Chief Minister discussed the development of the Visakhapatnam Economic Region. </p><p>He proposed development centered around 6 ports, 7 manufacturing nodes, 17 major agricultural zones, 6 service hubs, and 12 tourism hubs. NITI Aayog officials presented a detailed PowerPoint presentation. The officials outlined plans around seven growth drivers: ports, IT, agriculture, tourism, healthcare, urban development, and infrastructure. A total of 41 key projects are to be prioritized for implementation.</p><p>If these plans are realised within the next seven years, the region could see the construction of 7.5 lakh housing units, 10,000 hotel rooms, up to 20 innovation centers, 10 colleges, 7,000 hospital beds, industrial development across 20,000 hectares, 80 million sq. ft. of office space, and 60 million sq. ft. of warehousing capacity.</p> .<p>“We will develop beach roads from Mulapeta to Visakhapatnam and Visakhapatnam to Kakinada. These will be connected to national highways. The coast is a treasure trove—we must leverage it fully. Tourism is being treated as an industry, and our new policy is very investor-friendly. With future needs in mind, we will ensure continuous skill training for youth. We're adopting 'Work from Home' and Knowledge Economy outsourcing models. The goal is to provide work-from-home opportunities to 20 lakh people,” said the Chief Minister.</p><p>Developing Visakhapatnam as a steel hub in collaboration with the country’s top 3 steel firms; focus on petrochemicals, gas grid, port development, petrochem-medical tech, shipbuilding, defense, electronics, clean tech, and labor-intensive manufacturing were other issues that were discussed.</p>