Andhra Pradesh State IT and Electronics Minister Nara Lokesh, who also serves as Minister for Human Resource Development, has revealed that Andhra Pradesh has received “close to $120 billion worth of firm commitments in the last 17 months,” adding that his ambition is to reach the trillion-dollar mark in a recent interview with the Mint.
The state recently made headlines by securing a $15 billion investment from Google to establish an artificial intelligence hub and data centre — a move that signals its growing prominence in India’s technology and manufacturing landscape.
“I’ll sleep well the day when we have a firm commitment of a trillion dollars’ worth of investments in Andhra Pradesh,” he said.
Lokesh credited the state’s focus on speed rather than the traditional “ease of doing business” for its recent success.
“As investment sizes become large, it is important that states run faster,” he said, noting that this approach helped swiftly ground projects like Google’s $15-billion venture.
At the upcoming Partnership Summit in Visakhapatnam, 410 MoUs worth over $100 billion and creating 700,000 jobs are expected to be signed.
Commenting on inter-state competition, Lokesh said, “When states compete India wins,” while maintaining that Andhra Pradesh stands out for its efficiency.
Addressing criticism of offering “unsustainable incentives,” he said, “All states offer incentives… Our ability to foster relationships and ensure tangible results at record speed are showing.”
He emphasised that job creation remains central to the state’s development strategy.
“We are not just bringing investments into the state. We are actively matching supply and demand of required skill sets,” Lokesh said, calling his team “missiles” guided by Naidu, “the GPS ensuring that we achieve our objectives.”
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