MARKAPURAM: Water Resources Minister Nimmala Ramanaidu credited the NDA coalition government’s focused push over the past two years for resolving the Poola Subbaiah Veligonda project’s complex technical bottlenecks.
Addressing the gathering at the inauguration of Veligonda project in Markapuram district on Monday, Nimmala said engineers successfully excavated 1.80 lakh cubic meters of earthwork at Kollam Vagu, completed 4,924 meters of tunnel drilling, and executed 6,988 meters of concrete lining.
He said Phase-I will draw floodwaters from the Srisailam reservoir to provide 10.70 TMC of water, irrigating 1.19 lakh acres and supplying drinking water to nearly 4 lakh people across drought-prone and fluoride-affected regions of Prakasam, Nellore, and Kadapa districts.
He said the engineering team also cleared a critical 175-meter blockage in the Veligodu tunnel by extracting the heavy TBM from the 11.8 km mark.
To facilitate efficient water conveyance, Rs 462 crore was spent on feeder canals, laying 5.3 km of concrete work and 11 km of lining.
On the rehabilitation and resettlement front, water resources minister expressed gratitude to the displaced families whose sacrifices made the project possible.