VIJAYAWADA: Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu is learnt to have instructed his Cabinet colleagues to clarify Telangana’s concerns regarding the Polavaram-Banakacharla project.
According to sources, after the conclusion of the Cabinet meeting at the State Secretariat on Tuesday, the Chief Minister held a discussion with the Ministers on the recent political developments.
Asserting that Andhra Pradesh will only be diverting the floodwaters of Godavari from Polavaram to Banakacharla without harming the interests of Telangana, Naidu said some forces in the neighbouring state were unnecessarily politicising the issue.
“All parties in Telangana are talking about the Polavaram-Banakacharla project, and they even discussed it in their Cabinet meeting yesterday (Monday). We too should present our arguments,” sources said, quoting Naidu. Noting that several projects have been constructed and more are underway on the Godavari in Telangana without obtaining necessary approvals, the Chief Minister said he had never opposed those projects.
“However, despite Andhra Pradesh being the lower riparian state, some leaders in Telangana are raising objections to the Polavaram-Banakacharla project for political reasons,” Naidu said.
Reiterating that AP government will only divert flood water to Banakacharla, the Chief Minister wanted the Ministers and public representatives to explain about the facts of the project to the people.
MLAs to make door-to-door visits from July
Meanwhile, the government has decided to organise “Superlipalanalo Tholi Adugu” (First step in good governance), marking the coalition government’s completion of one year in office, at the district level under the chairmanship of the respective district in-charge Ministers. MLAs have been instructed to hold similar meetings in their constituencies by the end of June.
From July 1, the MLAs will undertake door-to-door visits to explain about the progress of the State, implementation of welfare and development schemes to the people. Emphasising the need to resolve all revenue-related issues within a year, the Chief Minister warned that citing technical problems as an excuse for delays would not be acceptable.