Reacting to Y S Jaganmohan Reddy's criticism of the government's attitude towards the Polavaram project, TPP Chairman N Tulasi Reddy said that the allegations are ba
The state government reacted sharply on Friday to the charges made by former Kadapa MP Y S Jaganmohan Reddy that the government has adopted a step-motherly attitude towards completion of the Polavaram irrigation project.
Twenty-Point Program (TPP) Chairman N Tulasi Reddy told mediapersons at the state Secretariat that so far the government has spent Rs. 3,038 crores, with the Centre also contributing Rs. 562 crores for the prestigious Polavaram project, as against its estimated cost of Rs. 16,010 crores.
After the demise of former chief minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy, Rs. 1,576 crore was spent for the project in roughly two years, Dr. Tulasi Reddy continued, ridiculing the criticism Mr. Jaganmohan Reddy made during the Harita Yatra.
Dr. Reddy was forced to bring out the facts connected to the expenditure and the efforts put in to seek the Centre's clearances, apart from the state's determination to secure national status for the project despite the objections of the Chhattisgarh and Orissa states, to prove the extent of resolve the government has had towards Polavaram after YSR's tenure.
The TPP Chairman stated that the national status for Polavaram is in the last stages of approval. He assured that efforts were in process to get permission from the Expenditure Committee of the Union Finance Ministry, and the Central Cabinet.
He also said that in 2010, the Forest and Environment Ministries gave the Stage V Forest Clearance, while the sanction for 45 roads under Central Water Commission came in January 2011. This is the pace of development, he stated.
There was no element of doubt that the project would be delayed, Dr. Reddy emphasised.
What motivated Mr. Jaganmohan Reddy to state that the project was delayed or neglected at the cost of the poor farmers' lives was incomprehensible, he charged.
Dr. Reddy said that the former MP has been irresponsible and that the allegations are baseless, which compelled the latter to allege that during the Harita Yatra program that was conducted to promote the Polavaram project, club dances went on. When mediapersons asked him to justify this accusation, he advised the reporters to watch the visuals of the dance.
He further stated that Mr. Reddy as an MP had never raised the issue of Polavaram on the floor of the Parliament. "Now," Dr. Tulasi Reddy continued, "Mr. Jaganmohan Reddy has all of a sudden undertaken the Harita Yatra for Polavaram." He advised the former MP not to fight with borrowed armour, with no essence in his statements.
Blocking a program like Racha Banda, which was designed to reddress the grievances of the poor, was undemocratic and inhuman, the TPP Chairman pointed out.
Both BJP and TRS were condemned for stalling the progress of Racha Banda that had entailed an expenditure of Rs. 2,500 crores.
Dr. Reddy termed the former MP's attempts as "unfortunate", as the poor attending the Racha Banda were confident of getting help from the government.
Courtesy: INN