Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Saturday met Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi, seeking to expedite central support for the cash-strapped state.
The Chief Minister sought support for rebuilding the state as well as for restarting the Polavaram project, construction of the greenfield capital city in Amaravati, the promises made during bifurcation as well as funds for backward districts. Naidu wanted the funds promised in the Union Budget to be released quickly.
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It may be pertinent to add that the new TDP led NDA government is yet to present a full Budget in the Assembly due to financial bankruptcy. Since the TDP is a key ally of the BJP, the party is hoping that its demands will be met after the Union government made a substantial allocation in this year’s Budget including Rs15,000 crore for the new capital city which had been abandoned during the YSRCP regime.
The Union Finance Minister also promised to fulfil the provisions of the bifurcation and complete the state’s lifeline, Polavaram project in her Budget speech. This was the Chief Minister’s first meeting with the Prime Minister after a generous allocation in the Union Budget which had left most states other than Bihar fuming.
Naidu was accompanied by the Union Ministers from Andhra Pradesh, K Rammohan Naidu, P Chandrasekhar, B Srinivasa Varma and TDP Parliamentary party chairperson Lavu Sri Krishna Devarayalu. The Chief Minister also met Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman during his visit to the national capital. He will meet Union Minister Amit Shah as well.
