ANDHRA PRADESH

Notwithstanding the Covid-19 pandemic, there has been asteady risein the registration of new companies inAndhra Pradeshin the last five years, as per the data provided by the Union ministry of corporate affairs. As many as 3,439 new companies were incorporated in state in 2020-21 financial year compared to 2,300 in 2016-17.

Altogether, 13,805 new companies were set up under the Companies Act, 2013 between 2016-17 and 2020-21 in Andhra Pradesh. During the same time, 8,779 companies went out of business in the state.

However, state pales in comparison when it comes to the new companies floated in states like , Maharashtra, Karnataka,Tamil Nadu, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat.
For instance, 10,128 new companies ventured into the market in 2020-21 in neighbouring Telangana compared to Andhra Pradeshs 3,439 during the same period. Other southern states like Karnataka (12,280 new enterprises), Tamil Nadu (9,632), andKerala(6,409) also dominated the business sphere.

The Andhra Pradesh government has introduced theAPIndustrial Development Policy (IDP) 2020-23, identifying 10 thrust areas. Manufacturing sector, accounting for about 11% of the gross state domestic product, remains the high focus area in the state.

According to the official statistics of the State Government, 44 large and mega industrial projects were established with an Investment of Rs 22,282 crore in 2019-20. The state attracted Rs 3,656 crore investment by paving way for 12 large and mega projects in 2020-21. The Covid-19 pandemic seems to have an impact on the quantum of investment in the MSME sector in the state besides the large industries. As many 10,019 MSMEs set up their shops in Andhra Pradesh with an investment portfolio of Rs 2,979 crore in 2019-20. The investment flow in the MSMEs has decreased to Rs 2,154 crore in 2020-21.

During 2020-21, 1,061 large and mega industries filed their proposals with the state nodal agency for 1,332 clearances and approvals from various departments.

Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Corporation allotted 467 acres of industrial land to 660 units with an EMPLOYMENT potential of 31,462 and proposed investment of Rs 2,244 crore in the 2020 calendar year.

The has decided to join National Generic Documentation Registration System (NGDRS) after the successful implementation of the pilot project in two areas. The new system is expected to ease setting up of new industries.

The Stamps andRegistration Departmentlaunched the pilot project in Kankipadu of NTR district andReniguntain Tirupati district. The state government has shifted the integrated data base of the registration department from Hyderabad to Vijayawada about a year ago with a view to join NGDRS.

The NGDRS transforms the manual registration system to online for all types of transactions, including sale, purchase and transfer of land. People can directly book slot in sub-registrar office and execute documents online.

Suicidesrelated to drug abuse and alcoholism saw 27% increase inAndhra Pradeshin 2020, compared to that of the previous year. Covid-19 is to be blamed as some people ended died by suicide for want of drugs and alcohol during the lockdown period in 2020.
The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) report titled ‘Accidental Deaths and Suicides in India’ says 385 people including nine Women and one transgender committed suicide in Andhra Pradesh in 2020, due to drug abuse and alcohol addiction. In 2019, 302 people, including seven women ended their life because of drug abuse and alcoholism.

Though there is no reliable data on ganja (weed, hemp, cannabis) consumption in Andhra Pradesh, it is estimated that around 0.2 per cent people use cannabis products in the state. Some people use sedative drugs, LSD and a few others.

Experts in the Health department say curiosity, peer pressure and attempts to stimulate sexual desires are the key reasons for youngsters to get addicted to drugs such as ganja and alcohol in cities and towns. In Andhra Pradesh, every year, more people are joining the ranks of drug addicts. Drug abuse and alcoholism have been driving at least 250 to 300 persons, including a few women, to suicide every year in state, they added.

CMYS JaganMohan Reddy launched geoportal-based tourism information system, asset management and decision support system at his camp office.
He declared 2023 as Visit Andhra Pradesh 2023 year.

To increase tourism revenue and visibility of destinations and efficiently manage the assets, theAP Tourism Development Corporationhad proposed the development of a web GIS portal for tourism information, tourism asset management and decision support system.

TheAndhra PradeshState Energy Conservation Mission (APSECM) has conducted a detailed audit in threeMSMEclusters of in Bhimavaram, foundry units in Vijayawada and refractory units inEast Godavaridistrict as a pilot project with the financial support from Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE). It has been identified that the MSME sector holds immense potential in fostering energy efficiency and upgradation of technologies.

The State Government has decided to implement energy efficiency in fisheries, refractory and foundry clusters across the state in the first phase and requested financial assistance from the Union ministry of power through BEE.

The government is planning to ensure integrated, seamless, efficient, reliable, green, sustainable and cost-effective Network in the state. The State Government wanted to ensure multi-modal cargo movement for optimal use of all transport modes, by developing multi-modal transport Infrastructure, including MMLPs.

The state government has constituted a high-levelState Logistic Coordination Committeeheaded by chief secretary. TheSLCCcomprising special chief secretaries and principal secretaries of the key infrastructure departments has been asked to prepare aMaster Planfor State and City centric logistics, providing actionable program strategies to align the state policy with the national logistics policy.

A study on National Rural EMPLOYMENT Guarantee Act (NREGA) revealed that workers, especially the tribal ones, in almost all Integrated Tribal Development Agency (ITDA) areas in state have been facing hardships in accessing their wages even after the amounts are credited in their bank accounts.

LibTech India conducted a study on NREGA workers’ hardships in accessing payments from preferred disbursement agencies in tribal areas of AP. The study spanned two years in Paderu ITDA, covering 877 workers from 11 randomly selected shanties out of 44.

The study revealed significant difficulties in accessing wages, with workers investing time and , often sacrificing a day’s income in queues at disbursement agencies.

Banks were scarce and Network connectivity was an issue, with officials at CSPs or BCs charging commission. The study’s focus on MGNREGA workers’ payment access suggested similar issues in cash transfer programmes in AP.

According to the study, 85% of workers primarily use customer service points (CSPs) or business correspondents (BCs) as their primary disbursement agency (DA), while 12.5% use bank branches and a small proportion use ATMs. Workers often have to travel long distances to reach the DAs, with 37% travelling more than 10 km. travelling long distances results in direct costs.

Andhra Pradeshhas almost ended in the bottom in the states startup ranking-2021 released by the Union Government on Monday. At least 15 major states are ahead of Andhra Pradesh in category A, which contains states having a Population of more than one crore.

Bihar and Andhra Pradesh have been identified as states having emerging startup ecosystem in category A with these two states placing themselves in the bottom of the list. Gujarat andKarnatakahave emerged as the best performers.

As per the state-specific report available with ToI, Andhra Pradesh has been evaluated across seven reform areas that have a significant contribution towards propelling the startup ecosystem.

Andhra Pradesh has shown active participation in the capacity building of enablers area in these rankings. However, it has mostly lost on incubation support, funding support, mentorship support and access to market.

According to experts, Andhra Pradesh may need to create a better Network of incubators, mentors, and funding agencies to encourage the youth with innovative ideas and to convert them into commercial enterprises. Migration of some startups to other metro cities is also a challenge for the state.

Andhra Pradeshranks among the top three states in the Goals (SDG) ranking in the country. While the state stood third in SDG over all ranking, it has emerged as the leader in clean Energy sector in the country.

NITI Aayog released the list of the latest rankings for 2020-21 in New Delhi. AP improved its score by five points to snatch 72 points to be among the top players in the country.

The index has become the primary tool for monitoring progress on the SDGs in the country and has simultaneously fostered competition among states and Union Territories.

Andhra Pradesh scored 81 points in POVERTY-alleviation”>Poverty Alleviation which is first of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). It improved nearly 21 points from the 60 in the previous ranking index. It is significant to snatch so many points when the states finances were severely hit by Covid-19.

AP also improved its tally in SDG-2 which targeted to make zero hunger in the state. The states score has jumped to 52 points from previous 47. APs tally in Health-sector”>Health sector also improved from 74 to 77. The state stood seventh in the good health and well-being index of the people.