Mega performs Bhoomi Pooja at Polavaram, commence works from Nov 2

Amaravati: As the High Court gave go ahead nod, the Megha Engineering and Infrastructures Limited (MEIL) performed Bhoomi pooja on November 1 for completion of remaining works in Polavaram Irrigation project, as announced by the Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy while cancelling the then contractor Navayuga Engineers Pvt Ltd. The Bhoomi pooja was performed by A Venkata Satish, DGM, MEIL at Spillway block No.18, Polavaram project. The Water Resources department Executive Engineer Yesubabu also present at the pooja.

The works will begin on November 2, announced the MEIL engineers on this occasion.

The MEIL informed that it has been gearing up to complete the Polavaram Project on a fast track mode. The company is planning and pooling all its resources to complete the project within a two-year timeframe, as mandated by the State government while entering into the agreement.

The Polavaram Project is proposed to supply the irrigation water for 7.2 lakh acres, 960 megawatts hydropower generation and lifting 80TMC of water to the Prakasam Barrage on Krishna river. It also aimed to supply the 23.44 TMC of drinking water to Visakhapatnam. The project will solve the drinking water problem in 540 villages adjacent to the Polavaram Project.

MEIL already began the survey, mobilisation of resources, especially engineering staff and machines. As the flood is almost receded, it is easier to begin the works. The company wants to begin the main reservoir works and the hydropower station works simultaneously.

Meanwhile, Minister for Water Resources P Anil Kumar Yadav said the government started the Polavaram project works on November 1, as declared by Chief Minister earlier. Addressing media at YSRCP central office at Tadepalli in Guntur district, on Friday on the occasion of State Formation Day, he expressed happiness that the High Court has on Thursday has vacated the stay given by a lower court on the Polavaram project.

He said the High Court verdict is a vindication of the government stand and dismissed the aspersions cast by the Opposition leaders on Polavaram project as being politically motivated. He said the project work would be completed in the stipulated time and so is the case with all other projects taken up by the government.

He said that the previous TDP government had boasted of completing the Polavaram project, but had done nothing between 2014 and 2017 and only completed the spillway in the past two years and kept on telling lies that it had completed the whole project.