Andhra Pradesh - Guntur   

Tenders to be called for delta modernisation this month-end

Photo: T. Vijaya Kumar

Huge masses of hyacinth fill the Tungabhadra drain near Tenali, blocking the free flow of water. —

GUNTUR: Following the State Government’s nod for splitting of Krishna Delta Modernisation works into smaller packages, the Irrigation Department officials are bracing up to call for tenders in the last week of May. The officials are hoping that that firms that had shied away from taking up works citing massive investment will now take up works split into smaller packages.

“We have split the two packages into seven and retained the third package. Tenders will be called for in the last week of May,” Irrigation Superintendent Engineer P. Gopalakrishna Reddy told The Hindu on Monday.

In a swift reaction to the calamity unleashed by Ogni cyclone, the State Government had given the nod for taking up delta modernisation works spanning five years. A high-level committee accorded administrative sanction for taking up works estimated at Rs.4,573 crores. According to the schedule, the works were supposed to complete by the year 2011, benefiting crops in 5.72 lakh acres in Krishna Western Delta and 7.33 lakh acres in Krishna Eastern Delta.

Out of that, the Irrigation Department allotted Rs.2,450 crores for modernising major canals and drains in Guntur and Prakasam districts. The works had been split into seven packages and only a couple of firms like Ramki and Progressive firms had bagged contracts.

Among the major works included in the package were modernisation of KW Main Canal valued at Rs.149.92 crores, KW Bank Canal (Rs.78.48 crores), East Side, Nizampatnam High-Level canal (Rs.261.42 crores). Though the tenders were called for in 2007, there was no response from the contractors.

The Drains Department, too, had split the nine packages into 22 smaller packages and hopes to call for tenders after receiving the government sanction.

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