Andhra to enact India’s 1st ‘Investors Protection Act’; got $345bn investment proposals since June 2024: Govt

Visakhapatnam: The Southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh is set to become the first in India to implement the 'Investors Protection Act', revealed state IT Minister Nara Lokesh. Speaking at the inaugural session of the 31st CII Partnership Summit 2026 in Visakhapatnam, Minister Lokesh announced that Andhra Pradesh is proactively working on an 'Investors Protection Act' to safeguard investors, and he also requested Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal to facilitate policy clearance for this and its implementation at the national level. Lokesh was addressing a gathering of industrialists, foreign delegates, ambassadors and government representatives.

"Building on our pioneering initiative of providing escrow accounts for investors, Andhra Pradesh is set to become the first state to introduce a dedicated legal framework for investment protection. We will also hold discussions with the Central Government to explore the introduction of a similar Act at the national level. Such legislation will provide greater confidence and assurance to industrialists and encourage them to invest," Lokesh said.

Last year, we assured the creation of an Escrow account, through which incentives can be delivered to industry without government interference. We (Andhra Pradesh) are the first state to deliver on that promise and ensure that investors are worry-free, he emphasized. An escrow account is a temporary, secure financial arrangement where a neutral third party (an escrow agent) holds money or assets on behalf of two transacting parties. The funds or documents remain locked in the account until all pre-set contractual conditions are fulfilled, after which they are released to the proper recipient.

'Investment proposals amounting to $345bn since June 2024'

Speaking at the CII Summit, Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu said Andhra Pradesh has attracted investment proposals worth ₹32.49 lakh crore (approx $345bn) since June 2024, of which proposals amounting to nearly ₹9.89 lakh crore came from the ongoing CII summit alone.

Citing pre-summit investment data, CM Naidu said the state had received 714 project proposals worth ₹22.60 lakh crore. Of these, 526 projects involving ₹17.10 lakh crore had received land and incentive approvals. As many as 303 projects, with investments of ₹7.30 lakh crore, were ready for the construction stage. Nearly 58 per cent of the projects that received land and incentive approvals had reached the construction-ready stage in terms of project numbers.

Emphasising the State's commitment to speedy clearances, the Chief Minister said that the AMCA defence project for developing and building India's fifth generation fighter jet received approvals and land allocation within just 36 days, while LG Electronics was preparing to commence production within 19 months.

CM Naidu reveals ambitious sectoral targets

The Chief Minister outlined ambitious targets across key sectors: a target of 160 GW renewable energy generation capacity has been set, with approvals already granted for 114 GW. In Electronics Manufacturing, the State aims to achieve annual electronics production worth ₹4.20 lakh crore. Projects worth approximately ₹31,926 crore have already received approval in electronics and home appliance manufacturing.

In Aerospace and Defence, an investment target of ₹50,000 crore has been set, along with a separate target of ₹25,000 crore for the space sector. The State aims to attract investments worth ₹30,000 crore in food processing sector. Approvals have been granted for 42 GW of solar cell manufacturing capacity and 53 GW of ingot and wafer manufacturing capacity. Data centre projects with a proposed capacity of 4.6 GW have received approval in Andhra Pradesh, against the existing national installed capacity of approximately 1.5 GW.