Date:26/12/2003 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2003/12/26/stories/2003122603760400.htm

Southern States - Andhra Pradesh

Invest in State, Naidu urges NRIs

By Our Special Correspondent

HYDERABAD DEC. 25. The Chief Minister, N. Chandrababu Naidu, on Thursday appealed to Non-Resident Indians (NRIs), particularly Telugus, to invest in Andhra Pradesh where they would be assured of good returns.

Highlighting the initiatives taken by the State Government in developing roads, ports and other infrastructure, he said NRI investors would be assured of state-of-art technology, sound managerial skills and excellent human resources due to the existence of a network of engineering, medical and other professional colleges in the State. "You come forward to serve your `janmabhoomi' and we will guide you on where to invest," he said.

Speaking as chief guest at a conference of the American Telugu Association (ATA) here, Mr. Naidu quoted the Goldman Sachs report that India would be among the top five nations in the world by 2040 because of its intellectual wealth and human resources. The day was not far off when NRIs would be coming to India in search of job opportunities.

Emphasising the importance the Government was attaching to building a knowledge-based society, he said one could attract international business through IT-enabled services (ITES) business process outsourcing (BPO) just sitting in AP. Outsourcing had become such a big business that some States in the USA and the UK were prohibiting it. But multi-national companies had made it clear that outsourcing was essential for ensuring cost-effectiveness and quality which was better in India when compared to the West.

"There is a lot of hope for future. India will become a developed nation in spite of the push and pull of political leaders like us," he said in a lighter vein to underscore the point that the country was strong in fundamentals. He said Hyderabad was acknowledged as the top destination in India in the field of bio-technology and it would not be long before it overtook Bangalore in IT although the latter had a 20-year-long headstart.

Mr. Naidu admitted that there were backward regions too in the State but this was due to historical reasons. But, the Government's efforts to develop backward areas had resulted in a health growth rate of 9 to 10 per cent in districts like Warangal, Khammam, Nalgonda, Medak and Cuddapah. The pursuit of economic reforms would yield still better results, he added. The Chief Minister said India, in some ways, was using technology more effectively than the US. For instance, he was presenting his Government's progress report simultaneously on six television channels and also interacting live with viewers on the telephone. He said it was a matter of satisfaction that the State had the maximum TV sets in India.

Earlier, Swami Paramarthananda, Head, Ramakrishna Math, reminded NRIs to preserve their Indian culture and ethos wherever they were working. The ATA president, A.V.N. Reddy, said this was the first time that the association was holding a conference of such magnitude outside the US.