The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Kurnool News : More water for Rayalaseema urged

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Saturday, Jul 17, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Kurnool

More water for Rayalaseema urged

By Our Staff Reporter

KURNOOL, JULY 16. The president of Kurnool district Freedom Fighters' Association, Gurram Venkat Reddy, has urged the Government to honour previous accords that advocated allocation of Krishna water for Rayalaseema region. He said as per the provisions of the Sribagh accord, priority should be given to Rayalaseema in utilisation of Krishna water since the region had no other source.

Mr. Venkat Reddy said the Rayalaseema projects had been neglected for long. The Telugu Ganga project which was started in 1983 remained incomplete even today. The project was estimated to cost Rs. 630 crores if completed in six years. So far, 2,100 crores was spent, yet 40 per cent of work was not attended. The issue was taken to the notice of the then Prime Minister, P.V. Narasimha Rao. The project was intended to irrigate seven lakh acres in Rayalaseema besides supplying drinking water to Chennai city. The Government was not sure even today whether it would be able to supply water to even one lakh acres.

He said the Telugu Ganga project would go down in the history as the project of corruption with dozens of engineers getting suspended on the charges of misappropriation. During the 600-km course of the canal, 700 irrigation tanks existed but no attempt was made to feed them with the water from the Telugu Ganga.

Mr. Venkat Reddy said there were supporters for unified State even now despite the tendency of the regionalism sweeping across the State. The Government should immediately take steps to undo the injustice done to backward areas by allocating more funds for development of irrigation.

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More water for Rayalaseema urged