Ongole (Andhra Pradesh)/IBNS: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy announced sops to the granite industry, including implementation of the slab system in a bid to buoy it up.
The Chief Minister on Wednesday unveiled the bronze statues of his father and ex-CM Y S Rajashekar Reddy, and ex-Darsi MLA Buchepalli Subba Reddy at Chimakurthy. Plant Wall Planters
Addressing a meeting on the occasion, the Chief Minister announced that a slab system would be placed to boost the granite industry, where Rs 27,000 would be provided each month to single-blade processing units.
Monthly Rs 54,000 would be given for multi-blade processing units in Prakasam District that purifies raw granite up to 22 cubic meters.
For the processing units in Srikakulam and Rayalaseema regions, Rs 22,000 and Rs 44,000 would be given for Single and Multi-blade granite processing units, he announced.
The Chief Minister said that the government had already issued a GO in this regard aiming to benefit over 7,000 units, as promised during padayatra.
He said that the slab system was brought during the YSR rule, but Chandrababu Naidu had withdrawn the initiative in 2016 pushing the units into danger.
Besides this, the Chief Minister also announced to reduce Rs two per unit in power bills for small granite units, from the existing tariff of Rs 6.3 and Rs 6.7 per unit.
With both slab system and reduction in power bills, an amount of Rs 350 crore will be borne by the State government every year.
Speaking of the Veligonda Project, he said that the then Chief Minister YS Rajashekar Reddy had initiated the project and completed 11.58 kms works of the first tunnel which is at a stretch of 18.8 kms, and completed 8.74 km of the second tunnel that is a 118.78 kms stretch.
“I will go to elections only after inaugurating the Veligonda Project,” he mentioned.
Wood Stove Jagan Mohan Reddy also promised to grant Rs 20 crore for the construction of a new Zilla Parishad building in Chimakurthy and making Mogigundla pond in Thullur Mandal a mini reservoir and naming it after Buchepalli Subba Reddy Reservoir.