Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee president and the party’s candidate for Kadapa Lok Sabha seat Y.S. Sharmila on Tuesday lambasted the YSR Congress Party government in the State for its “failure to complete the Handri-Neeva project”.
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Addressing a meeting at Madanapalle to drum up support for the party’s MLA candidate Mallela Pavan Kumar, Ms. Sharmila said Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy had completed 90% of the works on the project, conceived to provide a reliable irrigation and drinking water supply to the Rayalaseema region through drawing flood waters from the Srisailam reservoir. “None of the two YSR’s successors — the TDP and the YSRCP — could complete the remaining 10% of the works,” she said, recalling Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy’s promise to finish the works at the project within six months of forming his government in the State.
“He said his government would execute an outer ring road around Madanapalle, construct summer tanks, establish food processing units and cold storage facility, especially for tomato farmers and form clusters for weavers,” she said, adding that none of them have been fulfilled.
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Ms. Sharmila said it was a matter of shame that people of the State did not have a proper capital even after 10 years of bifurcation. “TDP’s Chandrababu Naidu talked about grand capital of international standards and did nothing, while Mr. Jagan spoke about three capitals, but did not give people even one.”
She said even while claiming to be the heir of YSR, Mr. Jagan did not follow his footsteps with regard to farmer welfare schemes like waiver of farm loans, provision of support price, subsidy on drip irrigation and adequate crop loss compensation.
In Pileru Assembly constituency, she campaigned in support of the party candidate Somasekhar Reddy. She said the local people had told her that their MLA was playing into the hands of Minister Peddireddi Ramachandra Reddy. “Why should one vote for a rubber stamp,” she asked and appealed to the people to support the Congress candidate.