Jagan Wants States To Work As Team As 7 CMs Skip NITI Aayog Meet

VIJAYAWADA: Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy appealed to all states in India to work as a team as the prosperity of the country is linked to each and every state’s well-being.

Jagan Mohan Reddy’s plea came at the governing council meeting of NITI Aayog in Delhi on Saturday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired the meeting under the theme “Vikas Bharat@2047”.

The CM’s appeal for team spirit at the Aayog meeting came even as chief ministers of seven states, including Telangana’s K. Chandrasekhar Rao, skipped the meeting.

Jagan Mohan Reddy sought that infrastructure be strengthened through healthy investments so that the country’s economy progresses rapidly. He said: “The cost of logistics in India is very high at 14 per cent of the GDP. Indian products thus cannot compete globally.” In this context, he pointed out that cost of logistics in the USA is limited to just 7.5 per cent.

Speaking on the global scenario, the Chief Minister referred to many developed countries, including Germany, facing a difficult situation due to declining birth rates. These countries will eventually face labour shortages. However, at the same time, artificial intelligence and machine learning are bringing about changes in the market scenario. “Curriculum should thus be developed dynamically,” he stated.

Jagan Mohan Reddy said investments are essential to achieve growth in the manufacturing and services sectors, for which a conducive business environment is essential. He pointed out that Andhra Pradesh has ranked first in the country for last three consecutive years in Ease of Doing Business. Various organisations and companies have come forward with proposals to invest ₹13 lakh crore. He underlined that this will create employment opportunities for around six lakh people.

On health, the CM said, “We need to be aware of rising healthcare costs and the growing burden of NCDs (non-communicable chronic diseases). Andhra Pradesh has set up 10,592 village and ward clinics, where one mid-level health provider, one ANM and Asha workers are available. Each village and ward clinic has 105 types of essential medicines and 14 types of diagnostics available. During the last two-and-a-half years, we have recruited 48,639 doctors and health personnel in the state. We have launched the family doctor programme, wherein doctors from primary health centres (PHCs) visit their designated village at least twice a month to treat patients who cannot come to village and ward clinics.”

The Chief Minister said women's empowerment is crucial to achieving the goal of inclusive growth. Hence, AP government is implementing many schemes like Cheyutha and Aasara, offering financial assistance and even offering zero interest loans to women self-help groups on condition of timely repayment, he added.