The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Cotton had envisioned Polavaram

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Tuesday, Jul 25, 2006

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Others

Cotton had envisioned Polavaram

B.V.S. Bhaskar

Farmers in delta area describe him as `Apara Bhageeratha'

RARE WORK: The photograph taken during construction of Sir Arthur Cotton barrage.

Dhawaleswaram : During the construction of the barrage across the Godavari, Sir Arthur Cotton, revered as `Apara Bhageeratha' by farmers in the Godavari and Krishna delta, struck upon the idea of constructing a storage reservoir at Purushottamapatnam in the 1850s. This is where the State Government has planned to construct a major irrigation project -- Indira Sagar (Polavaram project).

"We have records from the 1850s in our Cotton Museum, in which it was mentioned that a storage tank is required for Dhawaleswaram Barrage and could be constructed near Purushottamapatnam, which is at the mouth of Sripada Sagar," said M. Venkateswara Rao, Chief Engineer of the Indira Sagar project.

Sir Arthur Cotton, born May 15, 1803, with his magnificent engineering prowess, had done much for the nation, particularly the farmers of delta areas.

Fond remembrance

There are some 3,000 statues of Cotton in these districts, reflecting the popularity he enjoys among farmers.

"Now we are seeing much water going to waste into the sea. If Cotton was not there, this region would still be facing drought," said Bhaskar Reddy of Dulla village in Kadiam constituency, who has put up a bronze statue of Cotton in front of his house and performs milk `abhishekam' to it.

Irrigation offices in this delta area remembers Cotton by putting a photograph under which there would be a poem dedicated to the great engineer.

"The magnitude of the work , the quickness of execution and the productivity of engineers working in the 1850s can best be realised when juxtaposed with similar works executed after technological advances, mechanisation, modern management practices and improved communication facilities," wrote A. Krishnaswamy, IAS Special Administrator, Sir Arthur Cotton Barrage, in his foreword to the 1987 reprint of the monograph `The Engineering Works of the Godavari Delta' by George T. Walch, retired chief engineer for irrigation, Madras, published in 1896.

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