Family members and admirers of former Union Irrigation Minister K. L. Rao are upset with the way the government is developing the sepulchre of his ashes on the banks of Krishna River here.
Three decades have passed since the death of Kanuri Lakshmana Rao, known fondly as K.L. Rao by all. May 18 will be the 31st death anniversary of the man who was conferred Padma Bhushan and is known as the Father of Irrigation. He built the Nagarjuna Sagar Dam, which has an ayacut of over 22 lakh acres spanning across two States. He oversaw the construction of several other important irrigation projects in the country.
Though Hyderabad was the capital of the State, the then Chief Minister N.T. Rama Rao said the right place for Dr. Rao’s ashes would be the banks of the Krishna river. His ashes were brought to Vijayawada and laid to rest in a sepulchre in the premises of the Irrigation Model Guest House. There is nothing “worthy” to mark the spot were his remains have been laid to rest, say his admirers.
Crores of rupees were spent to landscape the Krishna banks for the Pushkarams, but no consideration was given to Rao’s sepulchre, said an ardent admirer. The granite used on the tomb was used by pilgrims to have their meals, take short naps and even perform pujas. The Water Resources Department decided to construct a glass room to protect it.
Several of Dr. Rao’s relatives are well established in the city. The first Speaker of the undivided Andhra Pradesh, Ayyadevara Kaleswara Rao, is also related to him. Dr. Rao’s children include former Union Secretary and IAS officer K. Sujatha Rao. Her two brothers are well established businessmen settled in New Delhi. The family has held political sway in the region for nearly two and half decades.
Call for monument
The family members are “extremely distressed” by the glass room being constructed by the government. They feel it is a “terrible insult” to the man whose vision transformed AP. They say that the Father of Irrigation deserved some sort of a monument to be remembered.
