The State government has chalked out plans to run a campaign on river Godavari and optimal utilisation of its waters during pushkarams.
“Entire State would get into campaign mode. Every person in the State should discuss and get connected to Godavari,” said Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu.
Addressing a meeting of ministers, MPs, MLAs, MLCs, Zilla Parishad chairpersons, district presidents and general secretaries of the party here on Saturday, the Chief Minister said people should realise the importance of river beyond the pushkarams. The Godavari is not a river but a lifeline. About 3,000 tmc of flood water is let out into sea.
“Even if we can make use of 1,000 tmc, we can change the face of Rayalaseema,” he said adding, “inter-linking of rivers would help in making Andhra Pradesh a drought-free State.”
Without naming YSR Congress president Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy, Mr. Naidu said “there are people who questioned the viability of the Pattiseema project and doubted my intentions to solve irrigation and drinking water requirements in Rayalaseema. Notwithstanding, we will definitely provide water to Rayalaseema and Kadapa district. It is our commitment.”
The Rs. 1,300-crore project aims at diverting Godavari water to the Krishna delta. The phase-I of Pattiseema lift irrigation project would be inaugurated on August 15.
Works apace
The works are going at brisk pace and water would be released through the right canal marking the inauguration of the project, he explained.
The government, in future, would link all the rivers and see that not a drop of water was let out into the sea. Our goal is to make drought free and poor-free State, he added.
