HYDERABAD, 27 October 2006 — Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh hoped that India would achieve and sustain 10 percent economic growth in the next 10 to 20 years to eradicate poverty, provide education to all and create unemployment opportunities for the youth.
Addressing a public meeting at Kothakota in neighboring Mahbubnagar district, after laying the foundation stone for four-lane extension works on National Highway-7, Singh said that the country was forging ahead on the development front. Achieving an eight to nine percent growth rate was thought impossible a few years ago but even nine percent growth has become possible now. “We are hoping for 10 percent growth rate,” he asserted.
The prime minister said that he had laid foundation for a project that would make the National Highway-7 from Hyderabad to Bangalore into a four-lane road.
“This is an important national highway linking north with the south. The highway passes through several districts in AP. The widening of the highway will bring benefits to the people of Mahbubnagar, Rangareddy, Medak, Nizamabad and Adilabad districts as well as Kurnool and Anantapur districts,” he said and added that the Rs.1.5 billion project in Mahbubnagar district covered a distance of 179 kms.
He hoped that the farmers in the state would benefit immensely from the widening of the highway. “I am sure that every village along this highway will look like a small town when this project is completed and the people will be able to go to Hyderabad very easily,” he observed.