VIJAYAWADA: Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Wednesday laid the foundation stone for Varikapudisela Lift Irrigation Project at Macherla in Palnadu district. The project will provide irrigation and drinking water to upland areas of Palnadu district. Addressing a public gathering, he said Palnadu region was bereft of drinking and irrigation water for decades even though it is located on the banks of the River Krishna.
“The irrigation project will be a game changer for Palnadu region,” he asserted. Stating that the project aims to transform Palnadu into a green hub, he said 1.57 TMC water will be supplied every day at the rate of 281 cusecs for irrigation and drinking purposes.
Emphasising that his government has commenced works for the lift irrigation project only after obtaining all permissions, including environment clearance on November 6, 2023, and acquiring land, he explained, “The project, which will be executed in a phased manner, aims to irrigate 1.25 lakh acres and provide drinking water to one lakh people, covering Macherla, Vinakonda, and Yerragondapalle Assembly Constituencies.”
While phase-1 will be taken up with Rs 340.26 crore, cost of construction for phase-2 is estimated to be Rs 3,809 crore.Accusing the previous government of ignoring the region, Jagan said, “The Chandrababu Naidu-government had laid the stone for the project without securing permissions and acquiring land, clearly exposing his habit of deceiving people.”Further, he launched a scathing attack on former chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu “for ignoring people and making empty promises”.
Asserting that the YSRC government has always prioritised people’s needs, Jagan pointed out, “It was my government which created the new district of Palnadu and established the first medical college here. My government has also strived for the socio-economic and political empowerment of all sections, which is attested by the fact that Rs 2.40 lakh crore has been directly credited to beneficiaries under DBT (direct benefit transfer) schemes and another Rs 1.7 lakh crore has been provided through various non-DBT initiatives. We have taken up Rs 4.10 lakh crore worth welfare and development schemes in the State in the last 53 months.”
Urging the public to notice the difference between the two regimes, he claimed, “Naidu served as chief minister for 14 years, but could not even do anything worthwhile for his own constituency, Kuppam. He also failed to bring water to the region.”In a dig at Naidu’s ‘visions’, Jagan quipped, “The TDP chief talks about what will happen after 50 years, but not about what needs to be done at present.”
“How can people trust a person who is known to have backstabbed his father-in-law, who gave him political life. There is no guarantee he will not do the same to people,” he said.Appealing to the people to reject the TDP-JSP alliance and support the YSRC, the Chief Minister noted, “Naidu has no empathy towards the problems of the people. While I depend on you and God, Naidu relies on the band of robbers and his foster son (referring to JSP chief Pawan Kalyan) to pursue the policy of plunder, stash and devour.”
