The US-India Business Council (USIBC) is promoting 5 Billion USD investments in Andhra Pradesh. A delegation led by its executive Vice-President Ms. Diane Farrell called on Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu at the Camp Office today and informed that the Mylan plans to expand its presence in Vizag in addition to existing four facilities.

Srini Srinivasan, managing director of Hospira told the Chief Minister that the company has already invested Rs 2, 500 crore in its manufacturing facility in Visakhapatnam. A delegate from Johnson & Johnson evinced interest in vaccines to reducing infant and maternal mortality rate, women health and hygiene while others expressed interest in vaccination/immunization programmes of the government.

The Chief Minister also explained about the advantages of AP having abundant water, 24X7 power and a long coastline which makes it the potential logistics hub for South East Asia. The Chief Minister informed them that health and education; preventive as well as curative healthcare will be focused. “I’m also open to public and private investments in healthcare. If you have proposals, we can discuss them with our Health Advisory Committee and take it forward,” the Chief Minister mentioned.

USIBC’s Ms. Diane Farrell informed the Chief Minister that the USIBC is expediting the work on making Vizag a smart city. She also invited the Chief Minister to the US and asked the government to do a road show on the investment opportunities in AP.

The delegation included Himanshu Priyadarshi, Head – Corporate Affairs of Hospira, Srini Srinivasan, Managing Director of Hospira, Ashoke Bhattacharjya, former director of Global Health Systems and Innovation Policy at Johnson & Johnson, Rohit Kumar, Senior Director, Government Affairs, Johnson & Johnson, Neelima Dwivedi, Senior Director of Merck, Mihir Shah, Director of Asia Pacific Public Policy, Merck, Singapore, Rajeev Mukundan, Senior Vice-President – Legal, Mylan, Claudia Poteet, Senior Director, Pfizer, Sharad Goswami, Head - Public Affairs, Pfizer India, Nivedita Mehra, Country Director, India, USIBC Delhi, Amy Hariani, Director & Legal Policy Counsel, USIBC and Michael Green, Senior Manager, USIBC.

Source: THI