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Officials told to speed up work on Mahendratanaya project

BERHAMPUR: Estimates committee of the Orissa Assembly has reviewed the progress of the two barrages on the upper end of the Mahendratanaya river in Gajapati district.

The committee, led by Jogendra Behera, has asked the irrigation officials to start work on the project as early as possible. Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik laid the foundation stone for the project on April 30 at Dambaguda in Gajapati district. As per the declarations made at that time, the work on the project was to start within two months and it was to be completed by December 2009.

The project was a retaliatory move of the Orissa government to a project of Andhra government on the downstream of the Mahendratanaya. Orissa government had alleged that Andhra government had violated the 1962 inter-State agreement by going ahead with its Mahendratanya project without consulting Orissa. Moreover it was feared that the Andhra project would affect irrigation and drinking water supply in Gajapati district.

Meanwhile the Andhra government has started work on its project but the Orisas project has not yet finished the ‘tender’ phase. The Mahendratanaya Sangharsha Samiti and Rashtirya Oriya Yuvak Pratisthan (ROYP) which had instigated the Orissa government to take up the project have asked the State government to start its project on the river immediately.

The Irrigation Department has issued notification for the tender process for the two barrages of the said project. But no contractor preferred to participate. After six months tenders have been invited again for the purpose. There were no major Class-I contractors in Gajapati district to take up such big works. Added to it, threat of Maioists in this naxal- infested area is suspected to be a reason behind lack of interest of contractors towards the project.

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