Hyderabad: Tech tycoon Elon Musk and his marque Tesla have become part of the Andhra Pradesh assembly polls electioneering as the American billionaire entrepreneur is all set to meet with Prime Minister Narendra Modi this week.
Amid sparring over electoral and governance issues, the ruling Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP) and opposition Telugu Desam Party (TDP) are both claiming that the futuristic car major would roll into Andhra Pradesh under their aegis after the elections.
Andhra Pradesh goes to the Lok Sabha and assembly elections 13 May. The results will be out 4 June.
Coinciding with the news of Musk’s India visit, reports emerged that the state government has renewed efforts to attract the much-anticipated Tesla manufacturing unit in India to Andhra Pradesh.
“Yes, we wrote to Tesla a few days back, evincing our strong commitment to provide suitable land parcel and a slew of customised incentives for the auto major to set up shop in our state,” a senior bureaucrat told ThePrint while expressing unwillingness to share more details at this juncture.
The official missive is a continuation of the state’s pursuit of Tesla. The YSRCP government, earlier in 2022, approached company executives to attract the mega-investment.
In January 2022, when Musk, while responding to a tweet, said he is “still working through a lot of challenges with the government” for launching Tesla in India, the state governments of Telangana, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, and Punjab took this as a cue and clamoured with their sales pitches on social media and using other avenues.
The US-based Tesla has been keen on selling its fancy EV cars in India but fears that cost-conscious Indian customers would be discouraged by the steep taxes on its imported cars.
The import duty on completely built EVs costing $40,000 or less has been 60 percent and goes up to 100 percent for costlier cars in India.
However, offering relief to companies like Tesla while giving a push to ‘Make In India’, the government of India last month notified a policy, lowering the import duty of EVs to 15 percent.
Companies availing the benefit have to set up units in the country at a minimum investment of Rs 4,150 crore and start commercial production within three years, as well as ensure that 25 percent of the parts used in manufacturing are from India within the first three years of production and 50 percent by the fifth year.
The scheduled Modi-Musk meeting will take place against this backdrop.
The Andhra Pradesh official said they have not received any response so far (to the fresh letter).
“Even if Musk announces a major decision after meeting the PM, we expect that Tesla would move ahead with scouting for a suitable spot only after the election process is over,” said the official. “We just wanted to be a step ahead (by reminding them of our interest). We are also in touch with the DPIIT (Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade), commerce ministry to ensure the same.”
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YSRCP, TDP clamour
In the election season, the news of Andhra Pradesh (AP) reaching out to Tesla was enough for YSRCP leaders and social media activists to project it as Jaganmohan Reddy’s feat.
“AP government invited Tesla to visit the state and see the sites required for locating their unit,” tweeted AP Infra Story, a blue-ticked handle giving updates on the state’s social, industrial, and infrastructure development.
🔸Andhra Pradesh Govt invites Tesla to set up EV Cars Manufacturing Plant In State 🚘
🔹AP Govt invited Tesla to visit the State and see the sites required for locating their unit
🔹The State Govt has informed Tesla that it has enough land banks in various districts. The… pic.twitter.com/JVihNeRDb7
— Andhra Pradesh Infra Story (@APInfraStory) April 12, 2024
Sharing news reports, Jagan supporters like Dr Pradeep Reddy Chinta, YSRCP UK convenor, have lent a hand in the pitch, tweeting “we are one of the best states in India”.
Dear @elonmusk
I am from AndhraPradesh India, we are one of the best states in India
I drive @Tesla car in UK & I am big admirer of @X -both are part of my daily life
We,people of AP, love to help you build more cars
You are most welcome 🙏😊#TeslaIndia #investinAP pic.twitter.com/m12iHId0MJ
— Dr.Pradeep Reddy Chinta (@DrPradeepChinta) April 12, 2024
As the YSRCP campaign on social media expanded, TDP general secretary and former minister Nara Lokesh tweeted that the “TDP government will be ready for Tesla in two months.”
Hi @elonmusk, it’s great to hear that you're planning to visit India! I was just discussing with my team about your meeting with @ncbn Garu in 2017, when you showed keen interest in our State, Andhra Pradesh.
Andhra Pradesh is a perfect destination – With skilled youth and… pic.twitter.com/NMJrS2cCdQ
— Lokesh Nara (@naralokesh) April 12, 2024
In 2017, TDP supremo and then chief minister Chandrababu Naidu, during his May US visit to attract industries and investments, had met Musk.
Speaking to ThePrint, Gudivada Amarnath, state industries minister, ridiculed Lokesh’s statement.
“He can wish anything but YSRCP will retain power and make every effort to bring Tesla to AP. On our CM Jagan’s directions, we had earlier approached the EV maker offering favourable land parcels near to ports or other places of their choice along with several incentives,” Gudivada said, pointing out that the state already has an automobile manufacturing eco-system, with the Kia unit at Anantapuram.
Also read: ‘YSRCP agents’ — why Jagan’s grassroots ‘welfare volunteers’ have come under EC radar
]Election stunt’
The wrangle over Tesla has put the focus back on industries and the investment scenario in the state, which, according to the opposition, has suffered since YS Jagan Mohan Reddy became the CM five years ago.
The TDP termed the AP government letter to Tesla “an election stunt” and questioned the track record of YSRCP in attracting investments.
“Forget getting new projects, in the past five years, Jagan, with his anti-industries/corporates and anti-development approach has only succeeded in driving out companies like Lulu, Jockey, and Amara Raja. Even Kia was troubled by a YSRCP MP, who made the Korean major jittery about continuing operations in the state,” said TDP spokesperson Jyotsna Tirunagari.
Following reports, and days of uncertainty that Kia Motors was in talks with the Tamil Nadu government to relocate its Anantapuram plant to the neighbouring state “for a variety of reasons”, the company, in February 2020, issued a statement, saying it has been receiving full support from the Jagan Mohan Reddy government.
Tirunagari pointed out that Kia, whose whose USD 1.1 billion Anantapur unit has an annual capacity of over three lakh fuel, hybrid, and electric vehicles, was brought in during Naidu’s tenure.
“Tesla could come to AP only under the leadership of Naidu,” the TDP leader said.
YSRCP spokesperson Kanumuri Ravi Chandra Reddy, however, claimed that if the BJP and YSRCP retained powers in their respective places, “Modi would favour Tesla setting shop in Andhra, given his bonding with Jagan despite the poll time compulsions”.
The opposition TDP is also questioning the claims of Jagan in March 2023 that the Global Investors Summit at Vizag attracted Rs 13 lakh crore-worth proposals to the state.
(Edited by Madhurita Goswami)