New Delhi: Parliamentary affairs minister M. Venkaiah Naidu on Saturday rejected allegations by Opposition parties that the Bill on transfer of Polavaram villages was unconstitutional, saying the Ordinance to this effect was promulgated when AP was still a undivided state and that there was no violation of the Constitution.
A day after Lok Sabha passed the Bill amid vociferous protests from the TRS, the BJD and the TMC members, Mr Naidu asked political parties not to politicise the issue as the Polavaram multi-purpose irrigation project would have an impact on the lives of millions of Telugu people. “The Bill was intended to replace Ordinance issued on May 29, 2014, for transferring some of the villages and mandals of Telangana to the residuary state of AP in connection with the construction of Polavaram project,” the minister told a press conference here.
Asked about allegations by TRS that the Bill was unconstitutional as the areas were transferred to residuary state of Andhra Pradesh without the consent of Telangana, Mr Naidu said the Ordinance was issued much before the new state of Telangana came into existence on June 2.
Batting strongly for the Polavaram project, the minister said the project would bring immense benefits by way of bringing additional farmland under irrigation, provision of drinking water and generation of electricity.
“This project would provide water from Godavari river to Krishna delta there by bringing down load on Krishna water which may help Telangana also,” he said.
He expressed concern over immense cost escalation of this project stating that the cost has increased from Rs 800 crore in 1980 to over Rs 16,000 crore at present.
On the issue of the said Amendment Bill being passed with out discussion, Mr Naidu said two hours time was allotted for discussion but the atmosphere in the House was “vitiated with some members trooping into the well of the House and shouting.”
The parliamentary affairs minister said the then UPA government and its prime minister gave commitments to do the needful to enable construction of Polavaram project including transfer of some villages to Andhra Pradesh, through an amendment to AP Reorganisation Act.
“Some Congress MPs who rejoiced over passing of the Bill creating Telangana cannot now object to operationalising the same Act passed by the UPA government,” the minister said.
