The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : MLAs clash over Godavari waters

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Aug 07, 2007
ePaper

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

MLAs clash over Godavari waters

Staff Reporter

DWARAKA TIRUMALA (WEST GODAVARI): The maiden review meeting, convened in camera on Monday by Minister for Social Welfare P. Subhash Chandra Bose in his capacity as the district In-charge Minister with the officials from various departments, his party MLAs and conveners of Assembly constituencies, witnessed a clash of interests between the city dwellers and the delta farmers on harnessing of the Godavari water for meeting drinking water needs in Eluru.

Even as Eluru MLA Alla Kalikrishna Srinivas expressed his displeasure over the delay in execution of the proposed Rs. 11-crore drinking water scheme that intended to draw the Godavari water through Eluru canal to the city for drinking water purpose, his counterpart from Attili Ch. Rangaraju opposed the move tooth and nail.

After the meeting, Mr Ranga Raju told reporters that utilisation of the Godavari water for drinking needs in urban centres would amount to denial of the right of delta farmers to obtain water for irrigation in the second crop. He said the Government was taking a lot of pains to augment the irrigation water supply by drawing 15 TMCs from Sileru for the second crop every year.

Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy laid a foundation stone for the water scheme three years ago as part of the endeavour to supply 110 TMCs of the river water to the city so as to help Municipal Corporation of Eluru tide over water crisis in summer. The In-charge Minister, however, promised to ensure that the scheme would become operational within a month.

The delay in release of funds under the Assembly Constituency Development Programme by the Government reportedly dominated the proceedings at the review meeting.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Andhra Pradesh