Rs 91,250 crores borrowed by government gone waste, says Bhatti

Hyderabad: Leader of the Congress Legislature Party in Assembly Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka on Friday alleged that even after borrowing Rs 91,250 crore, the government failed to complete at least one irrigation project in the State.

Addressing the media, he said that anyone with common sense would take loans at lesser interest rates. But the State government borrowed money from private banks at the rate of 11 per cent.

He said that even after spending Rs 85,000 crore, the Kaleshwaram project was completed only up to 25 per cent. While Kaleshwaram project is yet to be completed, Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao has been speaking about Palamuru – Ranga Reddy project.

Vikramarka made it clear that it was the Chief Minister who was an idiot by looting the public money. He ridiculed the comments of the Chief Minister, who said that while Kaleshwaram has been flowing in full speed, the Congress idiots have gone to Tummidihatti.

Vikramarka said the total debt burden of the irrigation project would reach up to Rs 5 lakh crore after beginning of payments. He said the Congress has constructed projects on Krishna and Godavari since they were not idiots.

He said the government borrowed money from private banks for Kaleshwaram project as there was no detailed project report of it. He said that as there was no DPR, the State government failed to get loan from the World Bank.

He said that by spending Rs 1,500 crore about 11 lakh acres of old Mahbubnagar district would have been irrigated. He said the previous Congress government planned irrigating 16 lakh acres under Pranahitha – Chevella, four lakh acres under Indira Rajiv Sagar, 5.5 lakh under Devadula and 2 lakh acres under Yellampalli.

He said with Rs 30,000 crore about 32 lakh acres would have been irrigated. On the whole if Rs 38,000 crore have been spent about 48 lakh acres would have been irrigated. But after spending Rs 88,000 crore, even one acre was not irrigated, he added.