Assembly Adjourned, White Paper on Irrigation Pending

Hyderabad: The first full-fledged session of the State Assembly after the Congress came to power was adjourned sine die on Thursday without the ruling party releasing the much-awaited White Paper on irrigation sector in the House.

All eyes were on the White Paper particularly in the backdrop of the sinking of the piers of the Medigadda barrage and submersion of pump house last year under the Kaleswaram lift irrigation project besides allegations of largescale corruption in all irrigation projects taken up by the previous BRS government.

The irrigation department and Medigadda barrage contractor L&T have been passing on the buck over who would pay for the repair works, in contrast to stand of the BRS government that the contractor would foot the bill.

The BRS government had also announced that Megha Engineering Infrastructure Limited, contractor for the pump house, would bear the cost of restoring it. “We thought the White Paper would bring out the facts on the reasons for sinking of piers, the parties responsible for damage and who would bear the cost of pump house restoration,” a senior Congress leader said.

Irrigation minister N. Uttam Kumar Reddy told mediapersons in the Assembly lobbies that the House would be reconvened after Christmas and the White Paper would be submitted on December 27 but the Assembly was later adjourned sine die.

The government seems to be finding it difficult to elicit accurate information in the absence of a secretary for irrigation, and engineers at the senior levels are deeply involved in executing the projects.

“We will not leave anyone responsible for the criminal negligence and wastage of public money,” Uttam Kumar Reddy told Deccan Chronicle. “We will soon come out with accurate information.”