Will Expose Truth On Polavaram, Banakacherla: Bhatti

Deputy Chief Minister Bhatti Vikramarka today issued a stern warning against the "conspiracies" being orchestrated against Telangana in the name of the Banakacherla and Polavaram projects.

Speaking at a public meeting in the Kollapur constituency held to mark the laying of foundation stones for new sub-stations, distribution of ration cards and issuing Indiramma housing pattas, Bhatti alleged that the BRS, BJP and TDP had colluded to merge seven mandals of Khammam district into Andhra Pradesh, a move attempted through an ordinance, that led to most of the problems.

He questioned the BRS government's silence over the past ten years. He said that this inaction had brought the Banakacherla issue to the forefront, and that it was only after Chief Minister Revanth Reddy and Irrigation Minister Uttam Kumar Reddy visited Delhi that the Banakacherla proposal was halted.

Bhatti said that AP minister Nara Lokesh's claim that Telangana was wasting water was misleading. He said that the downstream flow existed only because Telangana's upstream projects remained incomplete.

"The BRS came to power promising water, funds and jobs. But in its ten years in power it failed to complete a single major project on either the Godavari or the Krishna river. It was Congress governments that initiated and completed the Jurala, Nettempadu, Koilsagar, Kalwakurthy, Srisailam and Nagarjunasagar projects," he said.

Vikramarka added that the Congress had originally proposed the Pranahita-Chevella project be built at a height of 152 metres to benefit upland regions, but former CM K Chandrashekar Rao opted for the Kaleshwaram project at just a 100-metre elevation, and that it collapsed despite a massive expenditure of Rs 1.2 lakh crore, while Pranahita-Chevella could have been completed for Rs 38,000 crore.

He accused the previous government of redesigning irrigation projects solely to loot the State treasury, without delivering irrigation to even a single acre. He also added that only after Telangana fulfilled all its rightful needs would the discussions on Banakacherla take place.

The Deputy CM also said that the State had witnessed fear and suppression during the BRS rule, where dissenting voices were silenced and people were arrested arbitrarily.

"Congress has restored democracy in Telangana and is working in the interest of the people," he said.