SRIKAKULAM: Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has reiterated that all the rivers in the State will be interlinked to make Andhra Pradesh drought-proof and ensure adequate supply of water to every part of the State. Addressing a public meeting after performing Jalasiri Ki Harati to Nagavali River at Tamminadiupeta of Etcherla mandal and laying the foundation stone for the modernisation works of left and right old canals of Thotapalli Reservoir, taken up at a cost of `193 crore and inaugurating the Lift irrigation Scheme of Chinna Sana, constructed at the cost of `23.75 crore, the CM said that Godavari, Krishna, Penna, Vamsadhara and Nagavalli would be interlinked to ensure water security of the State.
He said that various irrigation projects had been taken up in the district at a cost of `1,415 crore and most of those would be completed by the end of this year. Reiterating that the TDP government had granted `1,616 crore so far for the Vamsadhara reservoir, under stage 2 of second phase, he also assured the farmers that efforts would be made to supply irrigation water to an additional ayacut of nine lakh acres in the district soon.
He said that 75 per cent of the Vamsadhara reservoir works had been completed so far and the remaining works would be completed by March next year. Similarly, while 33 per cent of offshore reservoir works had also been completed at an estimated cost of `466 crore, the project would be completed by the end of this year. Sixty per cent of interlinking works of Nagavali and Vamsadhara, at an estimated cost of `85 crore, had been completed and the project would be completed soon.
“By completing all the ongoing projects in the district, we would supply the water for the irrigation, as well as industrial and domestic needs of the people, of all corners of the district,” he asserted.Naidu said that with the State government inking pacts with different industries and organisations, the unemployed would get good job opportunities in different sectors. He said that `16 lakh crore worth investment would be made in the State in the coming days and 32 lakh people would, in all likelihood, get jobs.
Naidu continued his criticism of the BJP and held it responsible for the State not getting the Visakhapatnam Railway Zone and Steel Plant at Kadapa. He said that YSRCP president YS Jaganmohan Reddy had no right to criticise him.