Efforts on to get water from Nagarjuna Sagar Project

Ongole: Minister for transport Siddha Raghava Rao on Sunday said that Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu has appointed world class architects to prepare plans for the construction of new capital.

Addressing a press meet held here on Sunday, the minister said that the government will develop transport facilities to reach the capital within five to six hours from all the district headquarters.

He reminded that the government has appointed farmers’ empowerment corporation to waive the crop loans taken by the farmers to keep up its election promise and added that the government will pay the first instalment of the crop loans to the bankers very soon.

He said that due to delay in execution of works, the Gundlakamma project cost has been escalated to Rs 1,900 crore from Rs 690 crore and blamed the previous Congress government for neglecting the project.

He assured that he would take steps to release sufficient water to Nagarjunasagar right canal to reach water to tail end lands in the district.

He further said that he has directed Nagarjuna-sagar project chief engineer Soma Raju to submit a report on the water release to NSP right canal in Prakasam district.

The minister said that the government has taken steps to widen the existing single lane 46 km road to a double lane road from Gudlur to Ballikurva via Korisapadu and Addanki and Mundlamuru to Konakanamitla roads will be widened as a double lane road at a cost of Rs 50 crore.

Similarly, the 70 km single road from Donakonda to Venkatachalampalli, Donakonda to Podili single land road would be widened as a double lane road for the smooth flow of the traffic.

Mr Raghava Rao said that he will send proposals to the government to this effect in a couple of days.

The minister said that he has directed the Ongole RTC officials to ply special buses to Srisailam, Tripurantakam, Bhairavakona and Mahanandi for the convenience of the passengers on the occasion of Karthika Masam.