TD suspects AP's GSDP growth figures

TIRUPATI: Telugu Desam on Wednesday questioned the 16.2 per cent Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) growth rate of Andhra Pradesh, asking the YSRC to explain how it arrived at the figure.

Addressing a joint press conference in Nellore, TD spokesmen Neelayapalem Vijaya Kumar and Anam Venkataramana Reddy wondered how AP could record the highest GSDP for the second consecutive year this year when almost all sectors are in total doldrums.

Vijaya Kumar asked how could there be growth in agricultural sector when acreage and production of paddy have come down. Real estate in and around Vijayawada has totally collapsed, as no one is coming forward to purchase lands in Amaravati. Visakhapatnam is witnessing poor construction activity. Revenue from the sale of land is not on expected lines.

“On behalf of people of the state, TD wants to know the units taken into consideration for measuring the growth and components taken for assessing the growth in primary, secondary and tertiary sectors,” Vijaya Kumar said.

Anam Venkataramana Reddy found fault with Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy's claims that AP has achieved significant growth in terms of GSDP. He pointed out that the state’s revenue is growing only at 6–7 per cent in productive sectors. Then, how can GSDP grow at 16.2 per cent,” he asked.

The TD spokesmen wondered when GSDP has grown so much, why is state government unable to pay salaries to its employees, why roads in the entire state are in poor state, why dues of employees’ dearness allowance (DA) have not been cleared yet, why dues of retired employees have not been paid for the past several months, why not a single irrigation project has been undertaken while ongoing projects still remain incomplete and why the state is unable to proceed for a single day without borrowing money.

Vijaya Kumar and Venkataramana Reddy maintained that there is no relationship between YSRC government’s claims and state’s revenues.