VIJAYAWADA: Chief Minister Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy on Wednesday urged Union Jal Shakti minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat to provide adequate assistance for completing the Polavaram project expeditiously. He pointed out that due to inadequate aid, the project’s revised cost has gone up to Rs 55,656 crore.
The CM requested Shekhawat to instruct Finance and Jal Shakti departments to consider the Second Revised Cost Estimate as per the 2017-18 index and okay the Rs. 55,656 crore escalated cost.
In this regard, he explained that the number of families to be evacuated has risen considerably in 2017–18 as compared to 2005–06 – from 44,574 to 1,06,006 families. As a result, the land acquisition and relief and rehabilitation costs have gone up. He reminded that an amount of Rs. 1,779 crore spent on Polavaram works is still pending, along with December 2018 bills.
Jagan Mohan Reddy pointed out that any delay in releasing funds will further delay Polavaram and escalate costs of the national project, which is going to be the lifeline of Andhra Pradesh.
The Chief Minister told Shekhawat that the AP government plans to interlink the Godavari and Kaveri rivers. Responding to this request of Jagan Mohan Reddy, the Union Minister asked Jalasakti department advisor Sri Ram to discuss such interlinking of rivers with the AP government.
Taking this opportunity, AP CM invited Sri Ram to visit the state for detailed discussions over the linkage.
CM Jagan presented a replica of Venkateswara Swamy to Shekhawat on the occasion. He subsequently returned to the state and held review meetings with officials on Eluru mass illnesses and other issues at his camp office in Tadepalli.
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