Vijayawada: Though Cyclone Hudhud spared Krishna district and vent its full fury on Visakhapatnam and its adjacent districts, experts warn that in case a natural calamity strikes, the devastation would be far severe here.
“The canal system in Krishna delta, in its present condition, will not have been able to drain water at enough speed if the cyclone had struck the district as feared. The result would have been widespread inundation,” said Krishna Delta Parirakshana Samiti leader K. Sivaji.
Mr Sivaji said that the cyclone is a reminder that the Krishna delta modernisation works should be completed as early as possible.
“The canal system was designed and built by the British. Now, the canal bunds and locks are in a poor condition. Some locks are damaged while some bunds are weakened,” he said.
The previous government had taken up delta modernisation works at a cost of Rs 4,600 crore almost six years ago, but only 20 per cent of the work has been completed so far.
Mr Sivaji said that if cyclones hit the delta, the farming community will face huge crop damage due to inundation of fields. He said that the TD government was neglecting the modernisation work by appointing a technical committee.
“The delta farmers associations had brought the ground realities to the government’s notice, but the modernisation work remains on the backburner,” said A. Venkatappa Reddy a model farmer of Mellampudi.
Earlier, the Telugu Desam Rytu Sangham had staged protests in front of the irrigation office. However, at that time, the party was in the opposition and the TD leaders had demanded the government to complete the repair works on a war-footing.
