Naidu releases white paper on AP finances

Naidu claimed Andhra Pradesh’s liabilities had climbed to Rs 9.74 lakh crore under the previous administration

Metro India News | AMARAVATI

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Tuesday released a white paper on the State’s finances, accusing the previous YSRCP government of leaving behind a severely weakened economy and asserting that the NDA government has spent the past two years attempting to rebuild finances, institutions and investor confidence.

Describing the 2019-24 period as one of destruction and the present government’s mission as reconstruction, Naidu said Andhra Pradesh had suffered setbacks in Amaravati, Polavaram, industrial development and fiscal management. He credited the support of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan with helping put the State back on a recovery path.

Naidu claimed Andhra Pradesh’s liabilities had climbed to Rs 9.74 lakh crore under the previous administration. Of Rs 48,616 crore in pending bills inherited by the government, more than Rs 29,000 crore had been cleared, while employee-related dues amounting to Rs 30,849 crore were also settled, he said.

The government had renegotiated around 370 high-cost loans worth Rs 50,000 crore, resulting in estimated savings of Rs 1,100 crore annually and Rs 8,269 crore over the loan period. It also revived 86 stalled Centrally Sponsored Schemes, enabling the State to access Rs 29,890 crore, Naidu said.

Highlighting the economic gap with Telangana, Naidu said the per-capita income difference between the two States stood at Rs 30,201 in 2014-15 and had narrowed to around Rs 25,000 by 2019. However, he claimed it widened dramatically to Rs 1,06,854 during 2019-24. Had the 13.5 per cent growth trajectory achieved during 2014-19 continued, Andhra Pradesh could have generated an additional Rs 76,195 crore in revenue, he argued.

Despite fiscal constraints, Naidu said his government spent Rs 1.49 lakh crore on welfare programmes over two years, including Rs 68,296 crore under NTR Bharosa, Rs 20,210 crore under Talliki Vandanam and Rs 8,724 crore under Annadata Sukhibhava. The government also provided 30,607 public-sector jobs, including recruitment for 15,941 teaching posts through Mega DSC.

Looking beyond conventional welfare, Naidu outlined the P4 — Public-Private-People Partnership — model and Family Empowerment Mission as instruments to reduce poverty by connecting economically stronger sections with vulnerable families.

On infrastructure, Naidu said more than Rs 41,000 crore had been mobilised for Phase-I works in Amaravati, which he described as a self-financing capital project. He also reiterated the government’s commitment to completing the Polavaram project, with Rs 12,157 crore being spent on the works.

The Chief Minister unveiled a double-engine government, triple-engine growth strategy centred on three economic regions, Visakhapatnam, Amaravati and Tirupati. Visakhapatnam would focus on port-led manufacturing, green hydrogen, AI and data centres; Amaravati on governance, knowledge industries, AI and quantum technologies; and Tirupati on space, defence, drones, electronics and renewable energy.

Naidu acknowledged that fiscal stress remains severe, saying nearly 98 per cent of the State’s own revenue is being absorbed by salaries and related commitments. The government would therefore focus on revenue mobilisation, expenditure rationalisation, PPP projects and viability-gap funding to increase capital investment.

Calling the 2024 mandate a silent revolution, Naidu said the ultimate objective was not merely fiscal recovery but transforming Andhra Pradesh into a prosperous and competitive State under Swarna Andhra Vision 2047.