Polavaram to Be Completed Before Godavari Pushkarams: Naidu
Naidu said 36 irrigation projects would be taken up in the next three years at a cost of Rs 35,000 crore. A calendar with dates for launching the projects had also been released.
Kadapa:Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Monday said the Polavaram irrigation project would be completed before the Godavari Pushkarams and dedicated to the nation by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Addressing a public meeting in Proddatur, Naidu said interlinking the Godavari and Cauvery rivers would help address drought problems in the southern states. Despite the prevailing drought-like conditions, nearly 2,000 tmc ft of water had flown into the sea, he said.
“If at least 200tmc of Godavari floodwater is effectively utilised, Rayalaseema can be transformed into a green and prosperous region. The Godavari and Krishna rivers had already been linked, enabling the government to provide water to drought-prone regions,” he said.
Naidu said 36 irrigation projects would be taken up in the next three years at a cost of Rs 35,000 crore. A calendar with dates for launching the projects had also been released.
The government, he said, would spend Rs 24,000 crore on irrigation projects over the next two years, while the previous government had spent only around Rs 2,000 crore during its five-year tenure.
The Handri Neeva project had helped fill reservoirs in Rayalaseema and water had also been supplied through the Veligonda project and the left canal of Polavaram.
The Chief Minister said the government was committed to ensuring adequate irrigation water for Rayalaseema and accelerating major water infrastructure projects in the state.
