YSR Congress president Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy has said the pro-active stance of the Andhra Pradesh government in taking the Pattiseema Lift Irrigation (LI) scheme forward was only fuelling apprehensions whether the much-talked-about Polavaram project would take off or not.
“We are sceptical about the government’s capabilities to complete it in a year, as it says it will. Completing it in one year is not possible, considering the irregularities. Against a permitted 5 per cent, the bids in response to the tenders called came with an excess of 21.9 per cent. The way the government was going about Pattiseema was sure to delay the Polavaram project,” he said, categorically, addressing a press conference at the party’s Lotus Pond office in Banjara Hills here on Tuesday.
He recalled how his father Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy had amended an initial ruling that stipulated that excess bids should not exceed 10 per cent and brought it down to 5 per cent. The fact that the bid for the tender in the case of Pattiseema was 21.9 per cent with tailor-made prequalification and requirements, was an indicator as to the extent of corruption, he alleged.
Brandishing a copy of G.O.MS. No. 1 issued on January 1, 2015 by the Irrigation & Command Area Development department, AP, he dared presspersons to show him if there was a single reference to the LI scheme estimated at a cost of Rs. 1,300 crore would benefit the drinking water and irrigation needs of the parched Rayalaseema districts.
“All we are asking for is the time to be given to us to discuss the issue threadbare in the House, but the Telugu Desam government is denying the opportunity and stifling our voice,” Mr. Jaganmohan Reddy said, adding that this was why he chose to leverage the power of the print and electronic media to take the message to the people.
Pro-active stance of government in taking up Pattiseema LI scheme is only fuelling apprehensions whether the much-talked-about Polavaram project will take off or not.
Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy
Leader of Opposition
