KAKINADA:A Rs 186.36-crore project meant to ease drinking water shortage in the town and which was to be completed by December-end last year, has not yet been completed so far due to the apathy of authorities of the Kakinada Municipal Corporation (KMC), according to sources.
They told Express here on Sunday that the project, for which the foundation was laid by erstwhile chief minister of undivided AP N Kiran Kumar Reddy in June 2013, was to be completed in 18 months.
They said that the project cost was to be shared by the state government (70 per cent - be way of grant), the World Bank (20 per cent - by way of loan) and the KMC (10 per cent -- by way of investment).
The sources explained that the total work of the project was divided into four packages, but not even a single package work had been completed so far though Rs 38 crore had been spent. They blamed the district collectors, who had been given the additional charges as KMC special officers, in the past few years, for this.
The sources said that the project envisaged laying of new pipelines, including the 31-km-long main pipeline from Artlakatta, construction of 10 overhead tanks, water treatment plant, etc. As for the main pipeline, only 10 km had been completed in the two phases of the project so far.
They said that the authorities concerned had not acquired the required extent of land at Timmapuram village of Kakinada rural mandal for the construction of the proposed summer storage tanks as part of the third package. They alleged that the authorities had squandered Rs 9 crore sanctioned by the government for the purpose.
The sources said that at present, there were 23,400 tap connections in the city, excluding the public taps. They added that the KMC was supplying only 90 Million Litres a Day (MLD) of water as against the required 135 MLD.
Meanwhile, the problem of water shortage had been compounded by the leakages in the pipelines in several areas of the city, they added.
PROJECT DETAILS
Estimated cost Rs 186.36 cr
Grant Rs 130.45cr
World Bank loan Rs 37.27cr
Corporation share Rs 18.64 cr