Sector Expert Consultation On Economy, Business And Industry

Andhra Pradesh with its strategic location is poised to be the Gateway to East and Southeast Asia. The State estimated at Rs. 5,47,021 crores GSDP (at constant prices) for the year 2016-17 indicating a growth of 11.61 per cent. The strong manufacturing sectors along with government initiatives of promoting sector specific industrial parks have strongly attracted investment and created enabling an environment for economic development, business, and industry. The other major projects include Visakhapatnam-Chennai Industrial Corridor and Chennai Bengaluru Industrial Corridor.

Andhra is the first state in the country to have enacted the Industrial Single Window Clearance which has greatly simplified procedures for getting industrial clearances. The state also has separate acts for development in sectors such as solar power, electronic hardware, and food processing.

A consultation for business, economy, and industry was organized in partnership with Vizag Chamber of Commerce on 10th August 2017 at Vishakhapatnam. Some of the major intervention suggested during the consultation process are as follow:

• Elimination and simplification of existing laws/regulations or reduce the number of permissions/approvals to least 
• Cleaner fuel and energy 
• Single window clearance (avoid multiplicity of agency) for running business and implementation4Electronic online approval even for clearances and compliances 
• Policy to sustain the existing businesses
• Ease of continuing business (Support in scaling) – One point for contact in between business and Govt.
• Support/Incentive by Govt to social support policies for employee (like maternity leave, PF)  
• Support to indigenous industries using local resources 
• Expanding credit and training for MSMEs (low-interest rate, access to finance) 
• Development of export facilities
• Support to tourism sector 
• Public Private partnership
• Expanding existing business and bringing new projects to them
• Objective of new law should be deliberated with business and industries before implementation
• Upgrade port infrastructure
• SEZs
• Land pooling – nature and way
• Digitization of monitoring mechanisms and approval systems
• Overhauling of existing law (for example factories law in AP) and legal reforms 
• One consolidated law for running industries (not many laws by various departments- fire, municipal department etc.)  
• Improve access to latest technologies for MSMEs
• Support in Intellectual properties (IP) and expertise for IP rights  
• Strengthening CGTMS
• Alternate system for property collaterals 
• Increasing the time period for NPA (nonperforming assets) to 180 days to ease cash flows
• Legal reform to reduce the time for resolving cases of bad loans and NPA 
• Safeguarding Quality of work in contract system in respect to L1 bid 
• Penalties for late payment from buyers
• Institute a body for dispute resolution and arbitration (avoiding courts)
• Capacity building of sea and agro food exporters (in terms of standard, processing, and quality)
• Collective bargaining through farmer companies to reduce insufficiency and redundancy in agricultural produce
• Cooperative farming

List of Participants

• A.K.Balaji, President, Vassiwa
• Deepak.M.Menda, Director, Vizhakapatam Chamber
• G.V.Sivakumar, CEO, Maple Software
• M.G.Vaidyan, Senior Advisor, Tata Trusts
• Monish Row, President, Vizhakapatam Chamber
• Pooja Parvati, Nil, Tata Trusts
• Prof. B. Balamohan Das, Former Vice Chancellor, Acharya Nagarjuna University, Guntur
• Ravi Eswarappa, Director 
• President, Pena4 Tech Solutions
• RVS Rudraraju, Director, RHI Clasil Ltd
• Sasanka Kireeti, Nil, Tata Trusts
• Sonal Sarda, Director, Sarda Metal & Alloys
• Y.Narasimha Rao, Architect, Nil