Polavam debate: Jagan lambasts TDP; says 'project synonymous with Rajasekhara Reddy'

Amaravati: Asserting that Polavam is synonymous with Dr. YS Rajasekhara Reddy, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy said TDP has no moral right to speak on the project.

Intervening during n the discussion on Polavaram Project in the Legislative Assembly on Thursday, the Chief Minister charged the TDP with not following the technical order in the construction of the Project resulting in the washing away of the diaphragm wall in the floods in the past.

Dismissing the propaganda of the `TDP friendly media’ on the Project height as unwarranted and false, he said the government is committed to constructing the Project with its original height of 45. 7 meters but in the first phase, the height would be limited to 41.15 meters due to technical reasons for the safety and security of the dam.

He came down heavily on the media reports aimed at projecting Chandrababu Naidu as the person who championed the Project cause while faulting the present Government for the delay.

The Chief Minister displayed the designs of the Project in the House to explain the haphazard manner followed in the construction of the Project saying Chandrababu didn’t follow the technical order of constructing the spillway first.

According to the CM, the TDP government first took up the works using the Project as ATM and not the first needed priority works for the Project sustenance. The technical necessity of constructing the spillway first across the 2400-meter breadth of the river, the upper cofferdam at the upper stream next, and then the lower cofferdam in the lower stream before the construction of the diaphragm wall was not followed.

He said that the former contractors of the Project were relatives of Ramoji Rao and TDP leader Yanamala Ramakrishnudu.

Because the technical order was not followed, it was washed away in the floods leading to the formation of scour pits in the main dam area, the Chief Minister explained. Even the incomplete spillway construction was faulty, as a 400-meter gap was left over on either side.

As the revised estimates of the Project cost are to be approved by the Central Cabinet, the chief minister said he had met Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently and urged him to release an ad-hoc amount of Rs. 15,000 crore to go ahead with the project.

Further, the designs were approved by the NHPC and the Government is ready to pay compensation to the displaced persons as per the guidelines given by the Central Water Commission (CWC).