Centre okayed revised estimates, says Vijayasai Reddy

New Delhi : YSRCP Parliamentary Party Leader V Vijayasai Reddy in a press release here on Thursday claimed that the Union minister for Jal Shakti, Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, assured them of recommending approval of the revised cost of Polavaram project of Rs 55,656 crore to the finance ministry.

After meeting the Union minister with a delegation of all YSRCP MPs, including both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, Vijayasai Reddy said they had presented the minister with a copy of the second revised estimates approved by the Central Water Commission (CWC) and its Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) to reinforce their argument in favour of the state's claim.

He explained to the media in detail the pitfalls and loopholes in the process of securing clearances and said it was unfortunate that the approval files were being tossed between departments.

Vijayasai Reddy said in his statement that the Chief Minister, Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy, himself had met the Union minister and his department officials several times but the Centre was delaying granting the approval.

Polavaram Project was not only the dream of Andhrites but also a legally and Constitutionally guaranteed right of AP. The state government was committed to complete the project by 2022.

Criticising the Centre for not acting on its promises given to AP at the time of bifurcation, Vijayasai Reddy said the revised estimates followed a directive of the CWC to the state government. Apart from cost escalation, there were some changes to the design too, he said adding that including the new land acquisition Act and Relief and Rehabilitation measures accordingly, the 2017-18 estimates pegged the total cost at Rs 57,297 crore.

This revised cost was revised to Rs 55,548 crore at the behest of the Technical Advisory Committee and was recommended to the Revised Cost Committee for its consideration, he said. The committee had scaled down the cost to Rs 47,725 crore while recommending it to the ministry, he added. The ministry kept the investment clearance pending.

Later, the expenditure department of the Union finance ministry removed the drinking water component from the tabulations that reduced the final estimates further.

After the detailed explanation, the minister agreed to recommend the total revised cost instead of doing so component-wise. He also agreed to shift the headquarters from Hyderabad to Rajamahendravaram, Vijayasai Reddy added.