Naidu Announces ₹169 Crore Ex Gratia for Veligonda Oustees
The Chief Minister said the first phase of the Veligonda project was being inaugurated and the region was also being developed as a horticulture hub
VIJAYAWADA: Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu has announced an additional ₹169 crore in ex gratia for eligible families displaced by the Veligonda project, including young people who turned 18 after the original 2019 cut-off date.
Naidu directed officials to identify eligible displaced persons whose names were not included in the Gazette or socio-economic survey, as well as those left out of the award, and extend assistance to them.
The additional assistance will also cover those who became eligible between 2019 and 2026, with each eligible person to receive ₹2 lakh, the government said.
The government examined nearly 1,800 grievances and petitions from project-affected families before taking the decision. So far, 7,027 displaced families have received ₹905 crore under the rehabilitation and resettlement (R&R) package.
Naidu also directed officials to provide displaced families with ration kits sufficient for a month and ensure that eligible persons who crossed the original cut-off date were not denied assistance.
Describing the launch of the Veligonda project as a historic milestone, Naidu said he had laid its foundation stone nearly three decades ago and was now inaugurating it. He said he had fulfilled his promise to the people of Prakasam district and recalled the announcement of Markapur district.
The Chief Minister said the first phase of the Veligonda project was being inaugurated and the region was also being developed as a horticulture hub. He said water from Polavaram was being released up to Anakapalli in the first phase, while the government planned to extend it to Visakhapatnam in the second phase next year. The Polavaram project would also be inaugurated next year, he said.
Meanwhile, Naidu criticised YSRC president Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, alleging that the Opposition leader did not want local body elections to be held. Speaking informally to the media at the Secretariat in Velagapudi on Friday, he said the Opposition hoped that any delay in the polls would hurt the ruling alliance.
Naidu said urban and local elections should preferably be held through the direct election system to ensure political stability. He opposed the emergence of another power centre and called for elected representatives to work together.
On reservations, Naidu said providing 34 per cent reservation to BCs was a legal safeguard and asserted that the alliance government was giving greater priority to BCs in every election. He added that the final electoral rolls announced by the Election Commission would not prevent the State Election Commission from issuing notification for local body polls.
