Chief
Minister wants opening of inter-State borders with three States
CORE ISSUES:
Chief Minister K. Rosaiah with Tamil Nadu Deputy Chief Minister M.K. Stalin in
New Delhi on Saturday.
HYDERABAD: Chief Minister K. Rosaiah has requested the Centre to accord ‘urgent
approval' to its proposals for opening inter-State borders with Chhattisgarh,
Maharashtra and Orissa with an outlay of Rs.1,607.63 crore.
The proposals relate to laying a network of roads and
bridges on the inter-State borders that had been converted into “shelter zones”
by Maoists. Mr. Rosaiah said that though there was gradual decline in extremist
violence in the border districts of AP, there was a sharp increase in naxal
violence in adjoining districts of the three States.
Speaking at the National Development Council meeting in New
Delhi on Saturday, the Chief Minister said seven inter-State border districts of
AP adjoining Chhattisgarh, Orissa and Maharashtra faced the risk of relapsing
into extremism on account of their contiguity with the naxal-affected districts
in these States. If the State had to sustain the gains of controlling extremism,
it was imperative to categorise all these seven districts under the Special
Development Plan (SDP).
Mr. Rosaiah said the State suffered a shortfall of revenue
of about Rs. 20,000 crore between October 2008 and March 2010 due to the global
recession.
The Centre should allow the State governments with better
repayment capacity and whose debt was less than 35 per cent of the GSDP to
borrow more funds by relaxing the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (FRBM)
norms.
The Chief Minister also urged the Centre to review its
proposal to withdraw incentives and benefits provided to developers and units
under the Special Economic Zones Act after the Direct Tax Code comes into effect
from April 1 next year.
The developers had approached the government highlighting
the negative impact the decision would have on the investment climate in the
State and the investor confidence.
He wanted the
Centre to declare the Polavaram project as a national project and take steps to
accord requisite clearances to Pranahita-Chevella project pending with various
agencies of the Central government at the earliest.Mr. Rosaiah explained about
the 6.8 per cent growth achieved in agriculture during the period 2004-09 due to
corresponding increase in availability of irrigation and fertilizers and asked
the Centre to take up technically viable projects or increase the grant portion
under the AIBP substantially.