Amaravati development plan: Andhra Pradesh government signs MoU with Japan

Amravati: The Andhra Pradesh government on Thursday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Japanese government on development of infrastructure in the new capital, hours ahead of the Amaravati foundation stone laying ceremony.

The MoC was signed by Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and Japanese State Minister for Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) Yosuke Takagi, an official release said.

A memorandum of understanding (MoU) was also signed between Andhra Pradesh Finance department and Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) for inviting foreign investments and develop the state's new capital city and the region.

JBIC intends to promote investment in and export to the state by Japanese companies and is willing to develop mutual relationship of cooperation.

Andhra Pradesh's Principal Finance Secretary Dr P V Ramesh and Director General, Social Infrastructure Department, JBIC, Noriko Nasu signed the MoU, it added.

Naidu said, "Japan has come forward to work with us in diverse sectors such as urban development, port development, agriculture technology and super critical power". He said that the discussions held during his Japan visit are now being translated into reality.

Takagi said Andhra Pradesh was poised to emerge as the gateway of the East Coast.

Under the MoC, an Andhra Pradesh Investment Task Force will be established in Japan for accelerating industrial development. It aims to facilitate investment from Japan to Andhra Pradesh and accelerate industrial development through effective policy coordination.

Both sides also recognised the possibility of formulating the port development strategy in Andhra Pradesh, in collaboration with JICA's ongoing data collection survey.

MAFF, in charge of agriculture policies in Japan, in cooperation with Japanese governmental agencies, will lead industrial promotion and investment by Japanese companies in Andhra Pradesh in order to facilitate development of food value chains, in particular cold chains, and develop food processing industry in the state, it said. Both Japan and Andhra Pradesh welcomed the implementation of feasibility study for construction of ultra-super critical coal-fired power plants in the state.