VIJAYAWADA: The Water Resources department is expecting to get final clearance for the revised cost estimates (RCE) of Polavaram project shortly. Officials will visit New Delhi to clarify certain queries raised by the committee looking into the RCE. Once the details are submitted, the officials, who expect to get the long-pending financial concurrence for the revised costs in a fortnight or two, will know the exact cost for which the Centre has given its nod.
Though the clearance for `55,548.87 crore (2017-18 price level) from Technical Advisory Committee was given on February 11, 2019, the financial clearance is yet to be given. Only after the financial concurrence is given, the Union Finance Ministry would release the approved funds upon the recommendation of Union Jal Shakti ministry. While the RCE committee had concluded its meetings a couple of months ago, the State reportedly received a communication earlier this month that the scrutiny was completed. However, the committee is learnt to have once again sought clarifications.
“The committee has a few doubts regarding the quantity of works related to land acquisition, rehabilitation and resettlement (LARR) before March 31, 2014, and after the project was accorded national status from April 1, 2014. We furnished the details already, but our officials will have a meeting with the Union ministry next week, following which we expect the financial concurrence,” a senior official explained. Meanwhile, the Union Jal Shakti ministry has recommended release of `1,400 crore towards the reimbursement of the funds spent by the State on the national project.
“The file has been sent to the Union Finance Ministry and may be in the next few days we will get to know its status,” the official said. In November last, the Finance Ministry issued sanction order for `1,850 crore of the `3,000 crore sought by the State government. The funds reached the State in the first week of February.