The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Plea to CM on water supply to fluorosis-hit villages

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Jun 09, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Plea to CM on water supply to fluorosis-hit villages

By Our Special Correspondent

HYDERABAD, JUNE 8. M. Kodanda Reddy, former Congress Legislature Party secretary and chairman of the Mudireddy Ram Reddy Memorial Charitable Trust, has appealed to the State Government to release Rs. 215 crores to the Hyderabad Metro Water Supply and Sewerage Board (HMWSSB) to enable it to supply drinking water to the 404 fluorosis-affected villages in Nalgonda and Ranga Reddy districts.

Addressing a press conference, Mr. Reddy said he took up this issue of importance to seven lakh people in these villages with the Chief Minister, Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, recently. The Chief Minister assured him of directing the officials concerned to study the issue.

Mr. Kodanda Reddy said it was unfortunate that the previous Government had not taken any interest to pursue the matter during the last four years. He submitted the first memorandum in January 2000 to the then Governor, C. Rangarajan. Two years later, the HMWSSB, approved a plan to release 9.6 MGD of water from the reservoirs being built as part of the Krishna Drinking Water Supply Scheme for Hyderabad on the condition that the Panchayat Raj Department shares the capital cost of the project, working out Rs. 215 crores and deposits the same with the Board.

The Board's Managing Director, M.G. Gopal, wrote a letter to the Chief Engineer of Rural Water Supply of the Panchayat Raj Department, on December 17, 2002, approving the proposals, indicating the cost and details of water charges. But there was no response from the PR Department. Mr. Kodanda Reddy said it was surprising that the Department was not prepared to spare this amount that would solve the problem, faced by people for decades, permanently.

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