Mangalagiri: Include Veligonda in the list of approved projects

Mangalagiri: Three TDP MLAs on Wednesday urged Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat to issue a new Central gazette notification in order to include the Veligonda irrigation project in the list of approved and authorised projects.

The TDP sitting and former MLAs wrote a letter to Shekhawat, seeking a fresh Gazette to restore Veligonda status so as to protect the rights of farmers of Prakasam district as per the Schedule 11 of the AP State Reorganisation Act. Moreover, Veligonda project was vital as it was aimed to irrigate 4.59 lakh acres and provide drinking water to 1.5 million people in 29 mandals of fluorine and drought-affected areas.

The TDP MLAs also sought appointment of the Jal Shakti Minister to submit a memorandum. They told the Minister that the survival of the Veligonda project as a whole was threatened by the recent Central Gazette. Velugonda was dropped in the list of approved projects. This important project was listed as an "unauthorised project" in the "Unapproved" section whereas, the Reorganisation Act made it clear that the Veligonda project had all approvals.

Those who wrote the letter were TDP MLAs Gottipati Ravikumar, Dola Balaveeranjaneya Swamy and Yeluri Sambasiva Rao. The other signatories included former MLAs Bollineni Rama Rao, Kandula Narayana Reddy, Muttamula Ashok Reddy, Mukku Ugra Narasimha Reddy, Damacherla Janardhan Rao, Pothula Rama Rao, B N Vijay Kumar, Divi Sivaram and others.