AP gears up to hold ADB meet:CM

Hyderabad, Mar 10 (UNI) The Andhra Pradesh government is fully geared to host the annual general body meeting of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in May.

The infrastructure and hospitality facilities in the capital city would be upgraded further to meet the requirements for such a prestigious event, Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy informed the ADB President Haruhiko Kuroda.

Dr Reddy gave the assurance during wide-ranging discussions he had with the ADB President at a dinner hosted in his honour here last night, an official release said today.

Having already hosted several major events such as the World Buddhist meet Kalachakra, Pravasi Bharatiya Divas and the Indian Science Congress, the Chief Minister explained that the official machinery had gained considerable experience to play host to an important event such as the ADB general body meeting, which will be participated by more than 3,000 foreign delegates, including top executives of banks from across the globe from May three to six.

On the occasion, the Chief Minister announced that the government had decided to extend subsidy of Rs 20 lakh to each of the three star hotels for upgradation of facilities on par with international standards.

The ADB meeting would provide tremendous opportunities for tying up business and investments in view of the participation of a large number of important delegates from different countries. The delegates would be shown important destinations in different parts of the state for tapping investment opportunities, particularly in the areas of IT, industry and tourism, the release said.

On his part, the ADB President expressed his happiness over the facilities in Hyderabad, which was being looked at as the right destination by many, amply proved by the MoU signed for establishing the multi-crore FAB city here, despite stiff competion from other states.

The Chief Minister informed Mr Kuroda that he was monitoring on a weekly basis, the arrangements for the ADB meeting and a committee comprising officials from Finance and other departments was being formed to ensure that all requisite facilities were put in place.

Mr Kuroda enquired about the progress of international airport coming up at Shamshabad on the city outskirts and was informed that works were going on in full swing.

Dr Reddy explained the pro-active measures taken by the government to promote industries, including a reduction in the power tariff for HT consumers by four per cent in the last two years.

UNI