YSRC leader blames previous TDP government for loss

VIJAYAWADA: YSRC leader and former minister for water resources Ambati Rambabu blamed TDP government for the damage of diaphragm wall of Polavaram project as explained by the team of international experts.

Speaking to media on Saturday, he dared Chief Minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu for an open debate on the issue contending that the delays and increased costs were due to the mismanagement of TDP during its tenure and called for an early completion of the project to benefit the people.

Although the project was supposed to be completed by the Central government, Naidu took it over and handled it poorly by committing mistakes and hurried actions which resulted in the collapse of the diaphragm wall which was the reason for the delay of the project, he alleged.

The YSRCP government, after discussing whether to repair or rebuild, came to a conclusion after consulting international experts that the diaphragm wall was damaged to an extent of 485 metre and a final report was submitted to the Central Water Commission on August 12, last year.

He reiterated that the diaphragm wall should have been constructed only after diverting the river, a point now confirmed by the expert committee. The mistake committed by Naidu was to constructing spillway and diaphragm wall simultaneously in 2016 and the expert committee pointed out the same, he said.

He further mentioned that the committee had confirmed that the foundation of the upper cofferdam had sustained damage during the 2018 floods. He added that Naidu, who was the Chief Minister at the time, had not repaired the diaphragm wall before proceeding with the construction. This oversight had led to severe seepage, he said.