Congress woke up after BRS Padayatra call on PRLIS, says Niranjan Reddy

BRS alleged that the Congress government acted on the Palamuru Rangareddy Lift Irrigation Scheme only after the party announced a padayatra. Former Minister S Niranjan Reddy accused the government of delaying works and increasing project costs through negligence.

Hyderabad: Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) has alleged that the Congress government woke up to the Palamuru Rangareddy Lift Irrigation Scheme (PRLIS) issue only after the party announced a padayatra against the delay in executing the project works.

Former Minister S. Niranjan Reddy said the Congress government responded to the issue after remaining inactive for nearly two-and-a-half years. He claimed the decision came only after the BRS announced a padayatra (foot march) over the delay in completing the project.

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In a statement issued on Tuesday, Niranjan Reddy said nearly 90 percent of the PRLIS works had already been completed during the BRS regime. He alleged that the Congress government’s deliberate negligence over the past two-and-a-half years had led to a sharp escalation in the project cost.

Niranjan Reddy said that if the Congress government had completed the remaining works, it would have been possible to store 45 tmc ft of water this year in the Narlapur, Yedula, Vattem and Karivena reservoirs.

He recalled that the BRS had decided on May 15 to undertake a padayatra from Narlapur to Udandapur to protest against the stalled project works. According to him, the party had also proposed inviting K Chandrashekhar Rao to attend the concluding ceremony of the padayatra. Niranjan Reddy said the Congress government realised that public resistance was inevitable after the BRS decided to mobilise farmers and people for protests.

Against this backdrop, he said the Chief Minister held a review meeting on Tuesday with Ministers and MLAs from Palamuru regarding the PRLIS works. He expressed hope that the meeting would not remain a mere formality and that work would begin at the ground level.

Niranjan Reddy also demanded immediate repairs to the two damaged motors at the Kalwakurthy Lift Irrigation Scheme. He said the government should ensure that all five motors become operational.

He further demanded completion of the stalled works between Narlapur, Yedula and Vattem. Steps should also be taken to lift water and fill the reservoirs during the current year, he added.