NEW DELHI: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi as reports of strain in the state's ties with the Centre emerged to light. He sought the BJP supremo's help to fulfil promises made during the bifurcation of the state. Naidu said Andhra continues to depend primarily on agriculture, consequently lacking in the services sector as compared to other south Indian states.
The contribution of the services sector to Andhra Pradesh's Gross State Domestic Product in the year 2016-17 stood at 46 per cent, while it was 64.64 per cent in Karnataka, 62.56 per cent in Telangana, and 56.8 per cent in Tamil Nadu. He said his state was way behind the national average of 53.66 per cent, blaming lack of urbanisation for the poor performance of the services sector. “Even in terms of per capita income we are the lowest. Due to unscientific bifurcation AP has suffered badly. Whatever we have got so far is not at all sufficient,” he told the reporters.
Ties between Naidu's Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and the BJP have appeared to be frosty in recent time. The TDP has been demanding Special Category Status for Andhra Pradesh after its bifurcation in 2014, a demand bluntly rejected by the Centre. The party also recently sided with the Opposition in forcing the Rajya Sabha, where the ruling BJP and its allies do not have a majority, to refer the triple talaq bill to a select committee.
When asked if delay in central aid would affect the TDP's relation with BJP, Naidu said the Modi government had TDP ministers and his dispensation in Andhra Pradesh had representatives of the BJP. “We will consistently follow up and that is the only solution for AP, and there is no issue with the alliance. The PM has assured he would look into the issue,” he said.
