From Our Correspondent
CM Pushes Plan to Make Andhra Pradesh the East Coast Gateway
Amaravati: Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu has cleared the proposal to establish the Andhra Pradesh Logistics Infrastructure Corporation (AP-LInC), a dedicated government holding company tasked with transforming the State into the premier logistics hub on India’s East Coast. An MD will soon be appointed to lead the corporation, which will coordinate ports, airports, road networks, inland waterways and cold-chain systems, while driving large-scale investments into the sector.
Reviewing the plan at the Secretariat, the Chief Minister said AP-LInC must serve as the nodal agency for logistics infrastructure, including streamlining supply chains and bringing down logistics costs. District-level logistics cells will be created to strengthen operations at the field level, ensuring that even remote areas benefit from improved connectivity.
Naidu reiterated his vision to develop Andhra Pradesh as the “Gateway of the East Coast,” announcing plans for a dedicated logistics university and a civil aviation university. He directed port-led industry experts to form a 20-member advisory group to guide the State’s strategy.
Speaking recently at the East Coast and Logistics Summit in Visakhapatnam, Naidu emphasised that logistics is critical for economic growth and job creation. The sector currently contributes 1% to the GSDP, and the CM set a target of raising this to 3%. With six operational ports and four more coming up, Andhra Pradesh already ranks second in the country for sea cargo movement. He said ports or fishing harbours will be developed every 50 km along the State’s 1,050 km coastline, noting that neighbouring states—including Telangana, Maharashtra, Odisha, Chhattisgarh and parts of Karnataka—depend heavily on AP ports for cargo shipments.