 "Invest in logistics to make Indian products competitive: AP CM at NITI meet")
Calling for a healthy flow of investments into the logistics sector in India, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy, who was at the NITI Aayog Governing Council session in Delhi on Saturday, said that high logistics costs are hampering India's growth and curtailing the competitiveness of its products globally.
Underlining the share of logistics in India's GDP, which stands at a high 14 per cent compared to 7.5 per cent in the United States, Reddy emphasised the crucial nature of the sector and the costs involved. He sought continuing investments as seen in the past nine years to ensure rapid economic progress of the country.
The Chief Minister submitted a note to the Governing Council showcasing the steps taken by Andhra Pradesh to strengthen sectors such as logistics, public health, skill development and social and economic empowerment of women, said a press note shared by the state government on Saturday.
"Laying emphasis on port-based development, we are establishing four greenfield ports and 10 fishing harbours, besides developing the Orvakal Airport in Kurnool and striving to develop an international airport in Visakhapatnam through PPP mode," he told the session.
Stressing the importance of creating a conducive business environment to attract investments and promoting new technologies to achieve higher agricultural productivity and self-sufficiency, Reddy observed that the share of investments in manufacturing and services sector should be raised.
According to the CM, the state stood on top in ease of doing business for the past three years, including repealing several obsolete legal provisions to reduce compliance burden, which led to investment pledges of Rs 13 lakh crore during the Global Investors Summit in Vizag.