Canal beautification works stalled in Vijayawada

Vijayawada: Canal beautification works taken up by the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation along the bunds of Bandar Canal, Ryves Canal and Eluru Canal almost stalled in the city. Before the Krishna Pushkaralu, the corporation hastened the canal beautification works near Tummalapalli Kalakshetram and RTC bus stand areas. After completion of Krishna Pushkaralu in 2016, the corporation has grossly neglected the beautification works.

Chief Minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu is repeatedly insisting on canal beautification works in the city for the past three years. But due to encroachment menace and administrative reasons, completion of beautification works of canal bunds remains a big question in the city.

Ryves Canal bund from Alankar Junction to Maruti Nagar and Gunadala was in a very bad condition with piling up of garbage and waste material. Once upon a time Samba Murthy Road along the Ryves Canal was a red light area and notorious for anti-social elements. The corporation had shifted thousands of families from the canal bund to other areas nearly 15 years ago.

Now, Ryves Canal bund along Samba Murthy Road is free from encroachments. There is a possibility of developing greenery and growing trees along the bund. Similarly, beautification works along the Bandar Road also stalled for many months. The corporation has taken up beautification works on Bandar Canal Bund along Krishna Lanka Highway but could not continue up to Ramalingeswara Nagar and beyond.

When contacted Municipal Commissioner J Nivas said Rs 2 crore sanctioned for Bandar Canal beautification works. He underlined the need to speed up the canal beautification works in the city. Removing the encroachments on Eluru Canal Bund from Budameru Junction to Gunadala is also a challenging task for revenue, irrigation departments and the VMC.

Thousands of houses were built along the Eluru Canal in the last three decades. The officials may face stiff resistance from the residents because they are not willing to move from these areas as they invested heavily for the construction of pucca houses in the encroached lands.

Similarly, removing encroachments along the Ryves Canal at Arundal Pet is also a big task because several hundred families have been living there for more than five decades. In this backdrop, beautification of Ryves Canal remains a big question mark.

Assembly elections to be held in two years, the ruling party unlikely to take risk of removing thousands of houses along canal bunds for beautification works.

By md ameen