AP to Raise Polavaram Funding and Other Issues With Centre on December 5
Vijayawada: The Andhra Pradesh government would approach the Centre seeking relief funds for the Polavaram project-affected people and clearance for taking up new works.
The Union ministry of Jal Shakti called a meeting in New Delhi on December 5, to be presided over by the Jal Shakti secretary and attended by officials from the central water commission, the Polavaram Project Authority and the AP water resources department.
The AP officials are preparing a list of issues to be raised at the meeting.
They would press for release of nearly Rs 31,500 crore to provide relief and rehabilitation to the Polavaram project affected people at the 41.15 metre contour level. This has been pending for a long time, even as the revised cost estimates committee had approved it.
The proposal for funds sanction has to get clearance from the Union Cabinet and from the central ministry of finance. Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy has been assuring the project-affected people that he would do best to get the central funds for R and R package released as early as possible.
Similarly, the Centre has to agree for construction of a parallel diaphragm wall as the existing D-wall suffered damages at four places. The authorities are unwilling to take any risk of carrying out repairs and instead want to construct a new wall. This could cost Rs 400 crore and another Rs 800 crore to construct the new parallel wall.
This involves storage of a huge quantity of water in the reservoir once the Polavaram dam is constructed -- and any eruption of fresh safety issues with the D-wall will be disastrous.
The AP authorities also intend to sound out the Centre on how to go about with the seepage of the upstream cofferdam. Due to the seepage, a huge quantity of water is entering the construction area of Polavaram dam, resulting in further delay in the works. This is more so when the river is flooded during the rainy season.
Polavaram project superintending engineer Narasimha Murthy said, “We are getting ready with a host of issues to be raised with the Centre during the meeting on December 5, to seek funds and get clearances for several works, so that we can take up the project works expeditiously.”
Meanwhile, the authorities are invoking vibro compaction technology to solidify the sand on both sides, where the D-wall will be coming up. The idea is to make the wall firm and make it sustain the high pressure of water, following the successful completion of the dewatering works in the project’s work area.
