Centre agrees to interlink Godavari, Pennar; revive Singapore’s partnership in Amaravati development

New Delhi: The Centre on Friday agreed with Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu's proposal to interlink the Godavari and the Pennar rivers.

The Centre also supported the suggestion to revive Singapore's partnership in developing the capital city of Amaravati and the speedy completion of Polavaram.

The Chief Minister visited the national capital on Friday evening and called on the Union Minister for Finance, Nirmala Sitharaman, and the External Affairs Minister, Dr S Jaishankar. Both ministers responded positively to his suggestion.

Briefing media persons, TDP MP Lavu Krishnadevarayalu said that the interlinking of the Godavari and the Pennar rivers is crucial for the development of the backward region of Rayalaseema and the combined Prakasam district for which the Centre has given the green signal. The Minister for Finance agreed to extend all kinds of cooperation to the state in completing the project and also the Polavaram project, Krishnadevarayalu stated.

TDP MP said the External Affairs Minister has agreed to revive the Singapore partnership in the development of Amaravati. Both the Chief Minister and the Union Minister discussed at length the impact of the newly-elected administration in the United States on the economy of the country and the students visiting the US to pursue further studies.

Naidu informed the External Affairs Minister that Andhra Pradesh has now adopted 'Speed of Doing Business' in place of Ease of Doing Business. He appealed to Jaishankar to divert any kind of investments to Andhra Pradesh. " Chief Minister promised to welcome the investors in a friendly manner," the MP said.

Stating that Vijayawada city recently suffered huge damage due to heavy rains, the Chief Minister appealed to the Finance Minister to give relaxation for one percent of GST which will be a great relief to the state. She agreed to this proposal. The MP said that the Centre's response was very positive.