Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Thursday said that nearly 14 million smartphones should be manufactured for distribution in the state. He also said that the state government is planning to distribute a smartphone to each family in Andhra for ease of living.
The state government made the announcement in a press release from the Chief Minister’s office in Amaravati. However, it did not reveal any further details on how it plans to execute this decision.
The release also added that Andhra Pradesh had topped the Ease of Doing Business ranking by the National University of Singapore. Maharashtra secured second position while Delhi ranked third in the ranking after a study conducted by a team of researchers led by Dr Tan Khee Giap, co-director, Asia Competitiveness Institute, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore.
The institute announced the 2018 Ease of Doing Business Index, which ranks policies based on parameters such as attractiveness to investors, business friendliness and competitiveness, the statement added.
Expressing happiness over Andhra Pradesh being ranked number one, Naidu said that international investors look for a stable government with strong policies before coming forward to make investments.
The report also suggested that the government needed to bridge numerous institutional and infrastructural gaps in order to sustain its position in the future. It also said that worker density, foreign direct investment per capital, labour productivity and illiteracy rate were identified as the weakest indicators for the state.
Naidu said that the state would take into consideration the observations made in the report and overcome the weaknesses. He also said that the central govt should extend cooperation when a state was ‘marching forward’ in all sectors.
“We have to meet the expectations of foreign investors,” Naidu was quoted as saying.
The Asia Competitiveness Institute at Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore, was established as a research centre in 2006.