Hyderabad: The Andhra Pradesh government has proposed setting up an AP Wealth Fund, modelled on sovereign wealth funds in countries such as Norway and Abu Dhabi, which state Finance Minister Payyavula Keshav said could eventually grow large enough “to run the whole state”.
Presenting the state’s Rs 3.32 lakh crore budget for 2026–27 in the assembly Saturday, Payyavula said the fund stems from Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu’s vision and will be launched with a seed corpus of Rs 100 crore.
Payyavula said, “Our Chief Minister follows the maxim: ‘The best way to predict the future is to create it.’ He is leading Andhra Pradesh into a new development era centred on frontier technologies—deep tech, AI and quantum computing—under the concept of ‘One Family, One Entrepreneur’.”
“On his direction, we are launching an AP Wealth Fund, which we expect to eventually grow on the lines of the Norway and Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth funds. Today’s society, including myself, may not fully understand its long-term significance, but just as the 1990s generation benefitted from earlier reforms, today’s youth will benefit tomorrow,” Payyavula added.
Speaking to ThePrint later, Principal Secretary of Finance Peeyush Kumar said that private equity investors would be invited to contribute to the fund to invest in opportunities across the country and generate wealth for the state.
The finance minister Saturday presented a budget with total expenditure pegged at Rs 3.32 lakh crore. Revenue expenditure is estimated at Rs 2,56,143 crore, while capital expenditure is pegged at Rs 53,915 crore.
The estimated revenue deficit stands at nearly Rs 22,002 crore, while the fiscal deficit is projected at about Rs 75,868 crore—1.11 percent and 3.84 percent of the Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP), respectively.
Revised estimates for 2025–26 place the state’s revenue deficit at 2.33 percent and fiscal deficit at 4.57 percent of GSDP.
From a financial standpoint, Payyavula said the state is still recovering from fiscal stress.
“Things are not all that rosy. I continue to struggle while addressing the financial challenges left behind by the previous regime. However, our intentions remain uncompromising,” he said, while expressing gratitude to the Narendra Modi government for its support.
Payyavula thanked Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman for assisting the state in reviving the Polavaram irrigation project and accelerating the development of the Amaravati capital city, besides supporting initiatives such as the Rayalaseema global horticulture project and helping reduce the state’s debt burden through debt-swapping measures and other financial support.
The budget allocates Rs 6,105 crore for the Polavaram multipurpose irrigation project on the Godavari river, while Amaravati has been allocated ₹6,000 crore.
Payyavula also thanked the Union government for initiating steps towards granting statutory recognition to Amaravati as the permanent capital of Andhra Pradesh.
“The works are progressing rapidly as funding has been tied up through a self-sustaining model involving multiple financial institutions. Administrative sanction has been granted for 97 works worth Rs 57,868 crore,” he said.
City economic regions
Highlighting the Telugu Desam Party-led government’s regional development strategy, the finance minister said three regions—Visakhapatnam, Amaravati and Tirupati—have been identified as key growth engines.
He said the Visakhapatnam Economic Region (VER), spanning districts including Srikakulam, Parvathipuram Manyam, Vizianagaram, Visakhapatnam, Alluri Sitarama Raju, Anakapalli, Kakinada, East Godavari and Dr B.R. Ambedkar Konaseema, will be driven by seven major growth sectors.
An Economic Master Plan for VER has been prepared in association with NITI Aayog, and proposals worth nearly Rs 28,000 crore—including metro rail projects—are being submitted, he added.
Similarly, the Amaravati Economic Region spans the districts of NTR, Krishna, Eluru, Guntur, West Godavari, Prakasam, Palnadu, Bapatla and Markapuram.
The Rayalaseema Integrated Development Plan includes expanding horticulture coverage from 8.41 lakh hectares to 14.41 lakh hectares by 2030. The plan also focuses on irrigation and micro-irrigation projects, along with improving road connectivity to enable access to global markets.
Under the proposed Rayalaseema Global Horticulture Hub, more than 200 clusters will be established across 303 mandals in Ananthapuramu, Annamayya, Chittoor, Kurnool, Nandyal, Prakasam, Markapuram, Sri Satya Sai, Tirupati, and YSR Kadapa districts.
(Edited by Madhurita Goswami)
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