Nod awaited for Vizag and Chittoor as nodes of industrial corridor, says Piyush Goyal.

The State government’s proposal to give priority to the development of Visakhapatnam and Chittoor as nodes of the Vizag-Chennai Industrial Corridor (VCIC) is pending with the National Industrial Corridor Development and Implementation Trust (NICDIT), and a detailed master plan of the infrastructure needed for the corridor would be prepared after its approval, said Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal in the Rajya Sabha recently.

Answering unstarred questions raised by YSRCP member V. Vijaya Sai Reddy, the Union Minister said funds had been sanctioned for the development and implementation of the VCIC and the Chennai- Bengaluru Industrial Corridor (CBIC), which touch important towns in Andhra Pradesh.

ADB loan

The Union Minister said the Government of Andhra Pradesh was implementing the VCIC project with a loan of $US 631 million taken from the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

The bank identified Visakhapatnam, Chittoor, Donakonda and Machilipatnam as industrial nodes. The State government, however, prioritised Visakhapatnam and Chittoor and awarded seven civil work contracts.

The Minister said once the NICDIT approved the proposal, it would ascertain the cost estimates for the different infrastructure components along with equity/debt contribution of the Government of India for the corridor, the Minister explained.

The seven works that were in progress were the construction of one MLD common effluent treatment plant, augmentation of industrial area, construction of bulk water and summer storage tanks at Naidupet, laying of Samalkota-Rajanagaram Road, augmentation of sub-stations in Visakhapatnam and Chittoor nodes, and development of water distribution network in the GVMC, the Minister said.

THE HINDU