Chandrababu Naidu Proposes Bullet Train and Shared Infrastructure Push for Southern States

At the Southern Zonal Council meeting in Mahabalipuram, the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister called for cooperation on transport, logistics, energy, water sharing, skills and disaster response

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu called for greater coordination among southern states on infrastructure, economic development, water management and connectivity at the Southern Zonal Council meeting held in Mahabalipuram.
The meeting was chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah and attended by representatives from Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala and Puducherry.
Naidu said cooperation between the Centre and states would be important for resolving regional issues and argued that southern states should work collectively as India pursues its Viksit Bharat goals.

Among his proposals was a bullet train corridor connecting Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. He suggested that the proposed route pass through Kuppam and form part of a wider transport network connecting Amaravati, Bengaluru and Chennai.
Naidu also proposed a common logistics network and dry ports across southern states, along with greater integration between the southern power grid and the national grid.
On education and employment, he suggested creating a consortium of universities and skilling institutions from southern states.
He also proposed establishing a Mutual Aid Force that could support cooperation between states during disasters.
Tourism was another area raised at the meeting. Naidu proposed a common spiritual tourism circuit connecting Tirupati with Kashi, Ayodhya and Char Dham.

According to Naidu, southern states contribute around 31 per cent of India’s GDP. He said the southern economy could reach $10 trillion by 2047 and called on the region to become a major economic contributor to Viksit Bharat.
The Chief Minister also raised pending matters related to the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act.
He said issues involving Schedule IX and Schedule X institutions remained unresolved 12 years after the state’s bifurcation and urged the Centre to accelerate their resolution.
Naidu also sought the resolution of the resource deficit and matters related to Section 56.
Referring to infrastructure development in Andhra Pradesh, he said the Polavaram project, South Coast Railway Zone and Amaravati were progressing with support from the Centre. He also said Amaravati had secured its legal status as the state capital.

Naidu called for faster approvals for the Dugarajapatnam Port and refinery proposals.
He also sought the Centre’s approval for the Visakhapatnam and Vijayawada Metro Rail projects and the Kadapa JSW railway link.
Water sharing and river connectivity formed another major part of his address.
Naidu proposed diverting more than 500 TMC of water through the Godavari Cauvery river linking project. He said the project could provide a permanent solution to Tamil Nadu’s water problems and called for coordinated efforts by Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu on river water issues.
He also proposed a long term national plan for linking the Ganga and Cauvery rivers and sought time bound Detailed Project Reports and approvals for river linking projects.

Naidu maintained that the development of southern states would depend on cooperation and coordination between governments.
According to the information shared following the meeting, Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar praised Naidu for addressing the development requirements of different southern states during his remarks.

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