Andhra CM urges Chinese firm to develop industrial park

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Tuesday urged China Harbour Engineering Company to create a Chinese industrial park in the state.

On the third day of his visit to China, Naidu met Mo Wenhe, chairman of the China Harbour Engineering Company, who said the company is keen on replicating their China experience in Andhra Pradesh in infrastructure development.

"We are aware of AP's advantages of long coastline, and natural and mineral resources," he said.

Naidu invited the company to set up shop in the upcoming state capital, said an official statement here.

In a meeting with state-owned China Gezhouba Group Corporation (CGGC), Naidu asked the company to work with Andhra Pradesh in the construction of dams and linking of rivers.

The chief minister suggested that the company could work closely with AP's irrigation department in helping the state divert flood water draining into the sea to drought-hit areas of the state.

The CGGC officials said they could also look into funding and equity models for carrying out projects in Andhra Pradesh.

Naidu also met a delegation from Chinese province Guizhou, which evinced interest in contributing to the development of Andhra Pradesh.

Naidu asked the delegation to visit Andhra Pradesh and set up an industrial park. "You can finalise the deal and announce it when our prime minister visits China next month," he told the delegation members who replied in the affirmative.

Naidu also called on senor leader Wang Jairui, minister in the International Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (IDCPC), in Beijing.