Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has announced plans to transform the Visakha Economic Region — comprising Visakhapatnam, Vizianagaram, Srikakulam, Anakapalli, Kakinada, East Godavari, Alluri Sitharamaraju, and Manyam — into a $120 billion GDP-generating economy by 2032, turning it into a powerhouse of development akin to Mumbai. The announcement came during a high-level review meeting held on 6 June 2025 with officials from NITI Aayog at the State Secretariat.
The proposed Visakha Economic Region will encompass eight districts as aforementioned. Spanning 36,000 square kilometers and home to approximately 15.5 million people, the region currently contributes around $49 billion to the state’s GDP.
To achieve this ambitious target, the Chief Minister directed officials to fast-track economic projects and identify at least one lakh acres of land for strategic development. The plan includes generating between 20 to 24 lakh jobs over the next seven years.
The development strategy, as outlined in a detailed presentation by NITI Aayog officials, revolves around seven key growth sectors: ports, information technology, agriculture, tourism, healthcare, urban development, and infrastructure. A total of 41 critical projects will be prioritised under this roadmap.
As per the proposed blueprint, by 2032, the region is expected to witness the creation of 7.5 lakh residential housing units, 10,000 hotel rooms, 20 innovation centers, 10 new colleges, 7,000 additional hospital beds, Industrial infrastructure across 20,000 hectares, 80 million square feet of office space and 60 million square feet of warehousing capacity.
The Chief Minister emphasised the importance of coastal development and announced plans for new beach roads stretching from Mulapeta to Visakhapatnam and from Visakhapatnam to Kakinada. These roads will be integrated with the national highway network to boost connectivity and tourism.
Tourism will be treated as a full-fledged industry, and Andhra’s investor-friendly policy will ensure rapid growth, said Chandrababu Naidu.
In addition to tourism, the future $120 Billion GDP-producing region’s industrial focus will include establishing Visakhapatnam as a major steel hub, in collaboration with the country’s top three steel manufacturers. Other focal areas include petrochemicals, gas grid expansion, port development, shipbuilding, defence production, electronics, clean technology, petrochem-medical technology, and labour-intensive manufacturing.
The state is also eyeing 4–5 lakh new jobs in the IT sector by 2032, with a focus on attracting data centers, startup ecosystems, and innovation clusters.
Another key discussion point was the Vizag Metro Rail Project, which is planned to cover 77 km and is expected to be rolled out between 2028 and 2030.
The review meeting was attended by Minister Gottipati Ravikumar, NITI Aayog CEO B.V.R. Subrahmanyam, Chief Secretary Vijay Anand, representatives of the ISEG Foundation, and other senior officials.
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