'US took 100 years, India needs just one decade to develop': Nara Lokesh at Pan-IIT AP Summit 2026

Developed nations in the West took nearly a century to achieve their current stature, while global hubs like Dubai and Singapore took 30 and 25 years respectively. India, however, stands on the precipice of achieving developed-nation status in just a single decade, Andhra Pradesh IT & HRD Minister Nara Lokesh said on October 3.

Speaking at the Pan-IIT Andhra Pradesh Summit 2026 in Vijayawada, Lokesh framed the next 10 years as a "golden decade" for the nation, positioning Andhra Pradesh as a key engine driving Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of Viksit Bharat.

Unveiling the state's development strategy centered around a "3S mantra" — Speed, Service, and Stability — Lokesh declared the state government "a team in a hurry." Backed by a five-year mandate from the electorate, he emphasised that the administration is focused strictly on ground-level execution and job creation rather than signing decorative MoUs that remain on paper.

Lokesh called upon the global PanIIT network — encompassing 23 IITs and nearly 500,000 alumni — to help turn Andhra Pradesh into an "island of excellence" that can serve as a testbed for national innovation.

Highlighting the leadership powering this push, Lokesh drew an operating system analogy to describe Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu’s evolving tenure.

“You have seen version 1.0, 2.0, 3.0, and now he is in 4.0,” Lokesh said, noting that the Chief Minister continually updates with each term.

He added that what sets this administration apart is that the Chief Minister is “backed by young hardware,” pointing out that 50% of the legislators and 17 out of 25 cabinet ministers are first-timers. Describing the setup as a “marriage between seasoned software and young dynamic hardware,” Lokesh stated that this unique pairing provides Andhra Pradesh with an unprecedented competitive edge.

The Minister also outlined a shift in the state's administrative philosophy, urging a transition from informal "Jugaad" fixes to "institutionalised speed." Leveraging competitive federalism, Lokesh revealed that a leader at the summit had already received a call from a neighboring state within 24 hours inquiring why the Pan-IIT event was being hosted in Vijayawada instead of their state.

Lokesh noted that such intense state-level competition validates Andhra Pradesh’s positioning as a premier destination for technology, entrepreneurship, and research, expressing confidence that successful frameworks pioneered in the state will eventually be replicated across India.