Telangana Information Technology and Industry Minister KT Ramarao (KTR) said that the state's growth rate has outperformed the national growth rate and its share in the national Gross Domestic Product (GDP). According to KTR, this year it has increased from 4.74% in 2019-20 to 5%. The state's Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) during 2020-21 was Rs 9.78 lakh crore. The growth rate fell due to COVID-19 pandemic by 1.26% at constant prices (2011-12) but significantly better than India's projected GDP contraction at 8%. The resilience of Telangana's economy was aided by agriculture and allied sectors, which grew by 20.9%, dwarfing the 3% growth at national level, KTR said.
On Thursday, while releasing the annual report of the industries and commerce department, the Minister said that in 2020-21, the state recorded a per capita income of Rs 2,27,145 compared to the national average of Rs 1,27,768. Telangana attracted major investments from companies such as MassMutual, Laxai Life Sciences, Agasthya Foods, Trouw Nutrition, Ester Filmtech and others despite the pandemic induced slowdown, KTR said. In 2020-21, the Telangana State Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (TSIIC) developed 10 new industrial parks and allotted 810 acres of land to 453 industries with an expected investment of Rs 6,023 crore and potential employment of 7,623.
KTR said since the launch of new industrial policy TS-iPASS, the state has created 15.6 lakh jobs as the state attracted a cumulative investment of Rs 2,14,951 crore. He pointed out that Hyderabad ranked number one in the third and latest edition of FDI's Aerospace Cities of the Future 2020/21 rankings, under the category of 'Top 10 Aerospace Cities in Cost-Effectiveness' by FDI Intelligence.com, a division of Financial Times Group.
Telangana ranks fourth in the India Innovation Index report released by NITI Aayog under the major states category. According to Knight Frank, Hyderabad warehousing demand grew at 41% CAGR in the last 3 years. KTR said Hyderabad has attracted two major investments in Genome Valley. Granules India is investing Rs 400 crore to set up a finished dosages unit while Laurus Labs is investing Rs 300 crore for a formulations manufacturing facility. Granules India will generate about 1,600 jobs.
Ester Filmtech, one of India's leading producers of polyester films, engineering plastics and speciality polymers, will set up a Rs 1,350 crore manufacturing plant in Telangana with a direct employment potential of 800 people. Medha Servo Drives, a Hyderabad-based diversified firm, laid the foundation for setting up a rail coach factory in Telangana at an investment of Rs 1,000 crore. The factory is expected to create 1,000 direct and 1,200 indirect jobs.
The minister also pointed out that Telangana has also been on the forefront of promoting the use and development of new-age technologies like Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), Drones and Blockchain. Telangana became the first state to launch an actionable policy framework for Artificial Intelligence. The Telangana AI Mission (T-AIM) has been formed in partnership with NASSCOM to execute the strategy.
Cloud adoption has been mandated within the government and an easy to adopt framework has been released to support the same. Through Medicine From The Sky (MFTS), Telangana became the first state to pilot Beyond Visual Range of Sight (BVLOS) drone delivery of vaccines and essentials, KTR said.