Srisailam, NSP water for Krishna district: Minister

‘High-level review meeting will be held with irrigation officials’

Water will be released on a war-footing from Srisailam and Nagarjuna Sagar dam for meeting the drinking needs by April 1 in the parched areas of Krishna district, Krishna District In-Charge Minister Thota Narasimham said on Sunday.

At the District Review Committee meeting held here, the Minister responding to a flood of complaints over prevailing water woes, said that measures would be taken on a war-footing to meet the drinking water requirement.

“Scarcity of drinking water will be brought to the notice of Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy and a high-level review meeting will be held with the Irrigation officials in this regard,” said Mr. Narasimham.

Secondary Education Minister Kolusu Parthasaradhi directed officials concerned to keep a vigil on people trying to divert water from local ponds to fish ponds. Krishna District MLAs J. Venkata Ramana of Kaikaluru, D. Balavardhana Rao, and Ch. Ramakotaiah of Nuzvid pointed out the acute drinking water crisis in their constituencies.

They also listed defective water pipelines. Among other problems raised by the MLAs and MLCs were delay in ongoing pipeline projects, problems of lack of godown space for rabi crop and monitoring of mango prices in summer. Pamarru MLA D.Y. Dasu complained of monopoly in fixing sand price as the officials of Mines and Geology had auctioned only one reach in Krishna district.

“Other identified reaches in Krishna district should also be auctioned to avoid sand price rise. Estimated 450 acres of the encroached land in Pamarru constituency should be distributed among landless poor,” he told the In-charge Minister. Few MLCs including Babu Rajendra Prasad said that Vijayawada should be included in the list of four cities which are promised of only two-hour power cut in summer.

On failed cotton seed in rabi season, agriculture officials made it clear that notices were served on the companies responsible for selling the poor quality of seed in Kanchakacharla mandal. District Collector Buddha Prakash M. Jyothi and other officials were also present.