The Chief Minister K Rosaiah directed the officials that all the approved SEZs should be put on fast track. Detailed plan of action should be prepared for every SEZ separately and the required infrastructure should be prepared at the earliest. The Chief Minister held a review meeting on the Special Economic Zones (SEZs) with minister and officials. He also stressed the need for early establishment of aerospace SEZ which is being set up in the State for the first time in the country.

The Chief Minister also wanted the officials to speed up infrastructure and other basic facilities at the Genome Valley at Shamirpet since it has a great scope in the State. Mr Rosaiah also wanted the 'Kisan SEZ' in Kavali in Nellore district with coordinated efforts by all departments concerned. He also wanted the officials to prepare a Master Plan for PCPIR being set up in the coastal belt of the State besides preparation of detailed project report.

Andhra Pradesh has the highest number of Special Economic Zones (SEZs) notified in the country. The State as on date has 73 notified special economic zones followed by Maharashtra (58), Tamil Nadu (52), Haryana (31), Gujarat, Karnataka, U.P., Kerala, W.Bengal in that order. IT/ITES sector leads with 43 of them, followed by Pharma/formulations, multi-product and others. There are 30 more SEZs to be notified in the State. Maximum number of SEZs are in Ranga Reddy district (50) followed by Medak and Nellore (6 each) and Mehbubnagar (5). Other districts have just one or two SEZs only. Ranga Reddy has the maximum due to the IT/ITES sector. Total investment projected in these SEZs is Rs.70,000 crores with projected direct employment of 8.90 lakhs and indirect employment of 16.10 lakhs. In the notified SEZs, 43 has APIIC as developer, joint venture developer or assisted by APIIC. There are also 28 private notified SEZs in the State.

The Chief Minister also reviewed the functioning of A.P. Gas Infrastructure Corporation (APGiC). The APGiC has been formed for maximum utilisation of gas for expeditious economic development of the State. The ultimate aim is to provide gas for industrial consumers in the State, proposed to lay extensive gas transmission lines and distribution lines exploring possibilities to form an association with both Indian and International players. It may have equity participation in Bhagyanagar Gas Limited to enter into City gas distribution.

The meeting also discussed the proposed road to be laid along the PCPIR area from Kakinada to Visakhapatnam abutting Krishna-Godavari Natural Gas basin. It is the largest PCPIR in India along a length of 603.58 sq.km (60,358 hectares). The projected investment is Rs.3,43,000 crores with an employment potential of 12 lakhs. The total outlay for infrastructure development for AP PCPIR is estimated to be Rs.19,031 crores.

Major Industries Minister Kanna Lakshminarayana, Chief Secretary, S V Prasad, Principal Secretary, Industries, Sam Bob, MD, APIIC, B R Meena, Principal Secretary, Revenue, Rajeswar Tiwari and other officials attended the meeting.