*‘Sujala Sravanthi will script a new chapter for North Andhra’s future’:* _*- Palla Srinivasa Rao*_ ⅖
by Sharma K.V . Editor
Visakhapatnam, September 12:*Telugu Desam Party State president and Gajuwaka legislator Palla Srinivasa Rao on Thursday asserted that Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu’s farsighted vision is set to transform the fortunes of North Andhra, with the revival of the Sujala Sravanthi project promising to turn long-held agrarian aspirations into reality.
Addressing the media at the TDP office in Gajuwaka, Mr. Srinivasa Rao said the project—envisaged to provide irrigation to eight lakh acres and drinking water to nearly 30 lakh people—would become a lifeline for the region. “With a water network centred around Visakhapatnam, the filling of the Yeluru reservoir through the Polavaram left canal, and the interlinking of the Vamsadhara, Nagavali and Champavathi rivers, the Chief Minister has once again demonstrated his hallmark of long-range planning. He has set a target to complete the project within two years, a move that will decisively alter the lives of millions,” he observed.
Criticising the previous YSRCP regime, Mr. Srinivasa Rao alleged that all major irrigation works in North Andhra had come to a standstill. “The Sujala Sravanthi, launched in 2009, was virtually wrecked under Jagan Mohan Reddy’s dispensation. He announced projects worth ₹17,000 crore only on paper, without executing even a single rupee’s worth of work. Instead, North Andhra was reduced to a hub of ganja cultivation, and Rushikonda was stripped bare by his coterie. Prestigious companies such as Franklin Templeton, HCL, IBM and HSBC withdrew from Visakhapatnam due to the climate of intimidation. People were also misled with falsehoods over the privatisation of the Visakhapatnam Steel Plant,” he charged.
In contrast, Mr. Srinivasa Rao said the coalition government had restarted irrigation projects worth ₹27,941 crore, with Mr. Naidu insisting on their completion within two years. “The Chief Minister’s initiatives to establish Visakhapatnam as the State’s economic capital and an IT hub are commendable,” he added.
He pointed to the expansion of Bhogapuram airport and fresh investments from companies such as TCS, ArcelorMittal, and renewable energy ventures as indicators of a new economic dawn for the region. “These projects will generate thousands of jobs. It was our coalition government that secured ₹11,440 crore from the Centre to revive the Visakhapatnam Steel Plant, restoring it to 80% operational capacity,” he noted.“The coalition is committed not merely to addressing North Andhra’s perennial irrigation and drinking water woes, but also to ushering in a golden future through growth in industry, IT, and agriculture,” Mr. Srinivasa Rao affirmed.


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