Minister Lokesh highlights P4 model, 23 clusters to drive inclusive growth, jobs in Andhra Pradesh
New Delhi, Sept 24 (TNT): Andhra Pradesh IT Minister Nara Lokesh on Thursday highlighted the State government’s P4 (Public, Private and People Partnership) model and its 23-cluster strategy aimed at promoting inclusive growth, attracting investment and creating employment.
Speaking at a fireside chat organised by the Public Affairs Forum of India (PAFI) here, Lokesh said the P4 model seeks to extend the benefits of development to economically weaker sections by leveraging industry experience, guidance and market access.
Citing an example from Kuppam, he said a woman who earlier worked in a brick factory was now running one herself and employing 20 people.
The transformation was achieved within a year with an investment of ₹60,000, with support in bookkeeping, identifying markets, sales and marketing, he said.
Lokesh said companies were also being encouraged to adopt schools and contribute to curriculum development, early-age skilling and life-skills education, besides improving infrastructure.
On the State’s investment strategy, he said 23 sector-specific clusters were being developed across sectors including cement, automotive, material sciences, rare earth minerals, biomedicine, pharmaceuticals, AI, data centres, agriculture, horticulture and quantum technology.
A quantum ecosystem was being developed in Amaravati, with the State working towards bringing a 150-qubit IBM quantum computer to the city, he said.
Lokesh said Andhra Pradesh was targeting employment generation across skill levels and planned to create 50,000 hotel rooms, with major hospitality brands expanding their presence in the State.
He said the Horticulture Mission would be launched on October 2, with nearly ₹1 lakh crore planned for investment in research. The State also planned to establish an Indian School of Agriculture to strengthen agricultural research and development.
On data centres, Lokesh said Andhra Pradesh was adopting measures to address their environmental impact.
At least 70 per cent of the energy used by data centres would be required to come from renewable sources, including solar, wind, pumped storage and battery-based energy, he said.
He said the data-centre cluster in Visakhapatnam would meet its water requirements through the Polavaram Left Bank Canal and that the government was encouraging companies to establish desalination plants.
Lokesh said Andhra Pradesh’s economy was currently valued at $200 billion and the State had set a target of becoming a $2.4-trillion economy by 2047.
TNT KS
