VISAKHAPATNAM: The State government is firm on meeting the target of linking the Vamsadhara and the Nagavali with the Narayanapuram project in Srikakualm district, and the Nagavali, the Vegavati, the Champavati, and the Gosthani in Vizianagaram district by June, Minister for Water Resources Devineni Umamaheswara Rao has said.
“We plan to complete Phase II of Stage II of the Vamsadhara project and link the Hiramandalam reservoir through a high-level canal to the Narayanapuram anicut on the Nagavali. It will improve irrigation facility and provide water 24X7 to Srikakulam town,” the Minister said after a meeting with officials on Tuesday.
Utilising the Sardar Gouthu Latchanna Thotapalli project, linkages would be given to the Nagavali, the Vegavati, the Champavati, and the Gosthani. This would provide drinking water to Vizianagaram round the clock, besides improving water availability for irrigation, he said.
Under the Thotapalli project, irrigation facility was provided to nearly one lakh acres by feeding 444 tanks. With increased productivity, farmers were able to get 30-35 bags of paddy an acre, and the Chief Minister wanted steps to further improve it.
Seminar to involve students
Mr. Umamaheswara Rao said a seminar to create awareness on the ongoing big irrigation projects in the State among students would be organised in the fourth week of the month.
“Polavaram is the biggest project in the country with 50 lakh cusecs of floodwater. None in the present generation was born when major projects like Srisailam and Nagarjunasagar took shape. The seminar would help the present generation know about projects such as Telugu Ganga, Galeru-Nagari, Handri-Neeva, besides Polavaram,” the Minister elaborated.
Students of third and fourth year engineering courses, officials of the Irrigation Department, and representatives of water users’ associations would participate.
Along with farmers, students would be involved in taking up chain tanks at the field level, with water cascading from big tanks to small ones and canals, he said.
Without directly stating whether the now shelved Uttarandhra Sujala Sravanthi (USS) would be revived, he said that the pending projects in the USS would be taken up to get maximum benefits in a cost-effective manner. The Polavaram Left Main Canal is a part of the USS.
The meeting in Visakhapatnam would draw a detailed plan on achievable targets in six months to two years under it, he said. The Chief Minister wanted to provide irrigation up to Ichhapuram and Sompeta, he added.
