The Communist Party of India (CPI) on Monday staged a demonstration in front of the Prakasam Bhavan here, urging the government not to reduce the height of Polavaram Irrigation Project from 45.72 metres to 41.15 metres.
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Party cadre, braving the summer sun, gathering in large numbers at Church centre, shouting slogans urging Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy to lead an all-party delegation to New Delhi and impress on the Centre the need to protect the riparian rights of Andhra Pradesh. They also demanded an early completion of all major irrigation projects, including the Veligonda project.
The multi-purpose Polavaram project, declared a national project by the Centre, was the basis for the bifurcation of the undivided Andhra Pradesh, said CPI Prakasam district secretary M.L. Narayana. Power generation would not be possible if the height was reduced.
Uncertainty loomed large over Krishna-basin projects in Andhra Pradesh following the construction of new projects in upper-riparian States, including upper Bhadra project by Karnataka, he said. As a result, he said, farmers of Prakasam district and Rayalaseema pinned their hopes on the diversion of Godavari water to the Krishna basin to overcome water shortage. The project also envisaged transfer Godavari water to north coastal Andhra Pradesh, including to Visakhapatnam. Any reduction in Polavaram project height would go against the interests of the people of the State, he said.