Top priority to development of Vizag Med Tech Zone

Vijayawada: Dr Rajat Bhargava, Special Chief Secretary of Industries and Commerce, and Special Chief Secretary Poonam Malakondaiah, said here on Saturday that Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy was giving top priority to the Med Tech Zone in Visakhapatnam by increasing the allocation to Rs 300 crore and allotting 270 more acres of land to develop the second phase in the zone.

Addressing newsmen here, both the Special Chief Secretaries said that in addition to the existing companies in the zone, 177 more companies were poised to be established at Visakhapatnam. Moreover, some tech-pharma companies also evinced interest to set up their units, they said.

Strongly condemning the allegations regarding the medical equipment, they recalled that the State government has taken special care to increase the production capacity of ventilators which is 3000 per month in April to 6000 per month from May onwards at the Med Tech zone.

Similarly, the present production capacity of 10,000 coronavirus diagnostic kits per week will be increased to 25,000 kits per week by May.

They made it clear that the government was giving utmost priority for the manufacture of ventilators and coronavirus diagnostic kits after the breakout of Covid-19. Diagnostic kits would come out within a week and the ventilators would be made available by April 15, they said.

Rajat Bhargava said that along with Minister for Industries Mekapati Gautham Reddy, he went to Delhi to meet Union Minister Nitin Gadkari and the secretaries concerned to expedite the work at the Med Tech Zone.

The Union Minister positively responded to the plea of the State government for allocating more funds for the Med Tech zone.

They said that renowned firms have been roped in to receive large-scale national and international orders. He recalled that the Centre had already placed order with Med Tech Zone for supply of 3,500 ventilators.

Rajat Bhargava said that permission had been given for expansion of the zone by 270 acres and the finalisation of tenders would be completed soon.

As per the direction of the Chief minister, the work on second phase would commence soon.

Poonam Malakondaiah said that manufacture of the medical equipment had already started at Med Tech zone. She recalled that 13 testing labs to test the quality of the equipment were already at the zone.

She asserted that the Med Tech Zone would play a key role in future to manufacture medical equipment in the country.