ANDHRA PRADESH

cases in theAndhra Pradeshhigh court have increased by 350 per cent between 2019 and 2022. In 2019, there were only 1,175 cases. In 2022, that number went up to 5,324 (as on November 18). In most of the cases, State Government is the respondent which failed to comply with the HC orders.
The primary reason appears to be non-payment of bills to contractors and firms who executed works in various government departments. Increase in contempt cases indicates two-fold problem–increasing litigation and pendency.

The litigants

are also approaching HC instead of going to lower courts with execution petitions to fast track litigation. This is the reason why there is an increasing number of contempt cases but very few end up in convictions. If the number of convictions is also increasing on the same rate as that of cases being filed, then it is an alarming situation, he observed.

The power utilities ofAndhra Pradeshare gearing up to roll out a smart electricity meter project. The Union Government has decided to replace around 25 crore conventional meters with smart meters across the country under theSmart Meter National Programme(SMNP).

proposals for smart metering and loss reduction works in all the five circles of Andhra Pradesh Eastern Power Distribution Company Limited (EPDCL) have been recently submitted to the AP Electricity Regulatory Commission for approval. While the smart metering may cost about 950 crore in the EPDCL limits, the distribution loss reduction works were estimated at 2,578 crore.

The smart meters will help address several issues of the consumers ranging from wrong billing and reconnections to online monitoring of meter reading. It also helps power utilities in reducing aggregate, technical and commercial (ATC) losses, power theft, and distribution losses. Smart meters are

also used for recording the consumption of electricity and measuring voltage levels. While traditional meters measure the power consumption of a Home or business, smart meters live up to their name, and transmit the same information in every 15 minutes or hourly to utility providers.

A smart meter can help in improving the Average revenue from meters alongside a host of other advantages like better demand side management, better demand forecasting, and value-added Services like analytics and easier implementation of time-of-day tariffs.

The National Centre for Coastal Research (NCCR) in its report has pressed the alarm bells warning that the coastline along Andhra Pradesh is

facing a massive coastal erosion. Andhra Pradesh has a coastline of 974 km and of this, about 290 km is under varying degrees of erosion, according to the shoreline change assessment mapping done by the NCCR.

As per the research study, about 480 km of the coast in the state is subject to accretion (deposition of sand), while the remaining coastline is, however, in a stable state. The assessment was carried out by using satellite data spanning 28 years.

The coastal erosion had hit several beaches in Vizag city in the past. Visakhapatnam is taking up beach nourishment works in the eroded RK beach area every year to improve the beach front. However, the proposed permanent control measures have not made any headway.

Big liquor companies including Ab InBev, United Spirits and United Breweries, which leftAndhra Pradeshafter YSRC government announced phase-wise in 2019, are now looking to make a comeback to the state.

While the primary reason for these companies to shut their operations in AP was alleged non-payment of

outstanding dues, they had hastened through the exit process as they did not see any future prospects in view of the proposed phase-wise total prohibition. They are now planning to send their proposals to the State Government to restart their businesses in the state, sources said.

Sources said prohibition is not taking shape on expected lines and liquor turnover has witnessed a multi-fold increase in the last one year, which is the main reason for alcobev companies showing interest in returning to the liquor business in AP. Sources informed attempts

are being made by these companies to reach out to the state government through Industry bodies like FICCI and International Spirits and Wines Association of India (ISWAI).

The Software Technology Parks of India (STPI) will set up an incubation centre onAndhra Universitycampus. A memorandum of understanding will be signed with regard to the same on July 6, following which the foundation stone for construction of the AU-STPI hub will be laid in the next two-three weeks.

The building,

to be built at a cost of 60 crore, will come up on AU engineering college premises and will mentor startups from the IT/ITeS sector that provide technological solutions to different domains. 19.5 crore has already been sanctioned for the project.

Meanwhile, the AU-STPI-RINL Centre for Excellence for 4.0 will be operationalised on July 6. The five-year project will be shifted to AU campus after functioning for two years at RINL-Vizag steel plant. TheCoEwill bolster research, innovation, product development, and empower startups to build innovative products to address challenges of various industries.

Andhra Pradesh Tourism has received an award for Best Print Promotional Material at Travel Tourism Fair (TTF).Andhra Pradesh Tourism Authority(APTA) CEO SSatyanarayanasaid that this year the focus is on tourism promotion towards the revival of the travel, tourism and hospitality .

Organising such fairs is the best open-source platform to give fillip to the tourism sector in India, he added.TTFTravel & Tourism Fair in Hyderabad is Indias leading exhibition for the travel and tourism

industry. It provides an annual opportunity for organizations from India and abroad to showcase their products and Services.

The fifth Apex Committee Review Meeting (ACRM) of the states coastal security showed an emphasis on coordination between security agencies and various stakeholders.

It also focused on and other aspects.

The review was held at the Eastern Naval Command (ENC) headquarters on Friday. The review meeting was co-chaired

by chief secretary Aditya Nath Das and vice-admiral Ajendra Bahadur Singh, ENC chief, and attended by representatives, including from the State Government, Coast Guard, Intelligence Bureau, customs, CISF, marine Police, Fisheries department, minor port authorities and oil operators.

The meeting reviewed key issues on coastal security, developments and progress made since the last review in 2019. Due to Covid-19, the review was not held in 2020.

Andhra Pradeshhas been selected for the global Environment facility (GEF) project as part of a memorandum of understanding entered by the Union ministry

of forest, environment and https://exam.pscnotes.com/Climate-change”>Climate Change back in 2022.
The GEF project entitled transforming agricultural systems and strengthening local economies in high Biodiversity areas of India through sustainable landscape management and public-private finance has so far begun in five districts of the state. This will be consequently extended to 16 districts.

A total of 10 lakh hectares will be covered under the project in the state, the major objective of which is to reduce land degradation and ensuring Biodiversity conservation in agricultural landscapes in the Eastern Ghats. The project has already started in Bairluty micro landscape in Nandyal, Kondabaradi in Parvathipuram, KG Pudi in Vizianagaram, Rekulakunta in Kadapa district, and D Gonduru, M Nitapattu, Jaderu and Pinakota in ASR district.

The has extended the operations of Gujarat-based milk producers cooperative,Amul, in the state.
Amul will begin milk collection inWest Godavaridistrict. It was launched in the state in December 2020 with operations in Kadapa, Chittoor and Prakasam districts. Amul later extended to Guntur district.

Amul acquires milk from these Dairy farmers through milk collection centres, the quality of milk is tested in front of the farmers, and they are provided with a slip on the spot, this slip shows the grade of the milk and how much it will cost, this helps eliminate any discrepancies in payments to the

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