Polavaram, Dec 1: The former chief minister and TDP national president, Mr Nara Chandrababu Naidu, on Thursday made it clear that he will visit Polavaram project at any cost even if the police block his way to create hurdles.
Addressing a road show at Polavaram as the police blocked his way to the project parking vehicles on the road, Mr Chandrababu said that he made it clear to the Prime Minister, Mr Narendra Modi, that he would take oath as the chief minister only if the affected mandals of the project are merged with Andhra Pradesh. “Only then, the Prime Minister and other top leaders, have decided to promulgate an Ordinance on merging these mandals with the State and this was a historic decision,” he stated.
Making it clear that visiting Polavaram is nothing new to him as he visited the project on monthly-basis when he was the chief minister, Mr Chandrababu Naidu asked as to why obstructions are being created for his visit to Polavaram now. Pointing out that the Polavaram project works did not move forward when the Late YS Rajasekhara Reddy was the chief minister while the tenders were cancelled during Mr Kiran Kumar Reddy’s regime, he said after he became the chief minister, he took all possible steps to complete the project works and 75 per cent of the works were executed during his tenure. “When a project is taken up, justice should be done to both those who get benefit from it along with those who suffer losses too,” Mr Chandrababu said.
“Almost 72 per cent of the project works were completed during my tenure and should I, as former chief minister, not visit the project now,” he asked and said that obstructions were created for his visit to Polavaram. “Why the Naxalite problem and security issue are cropping up now when there was no problem at all when I visited it 28 times,” he pointed out.
Making it clear that he will certainly visit the project site either tomorrow (Friday) or some other day later, Mr Chandrababu Naidu said that if the project is completed the State will be totally free from drought. “It is my dream to see to it that water is supplied to the whole State through Polavaram project. Had the TDP continued in power the project would have been completed by now and Polavaram village would have been transformed into a big town,” he stated.
Pointing out that the Polavaram Project Authority (PPA) has made it clear to the State Government not to change the contractor, the TDP national president said that “This psycho Chief Minister did not heed the PPA words. This is the reason as to why we are asking ‘Idemi Kharma-Mana Rashtraniki’.” Though the Centre is releasing the funds for the project, the State is not interested in completing it, he said.
Mr Chandrababu Naidu called upon the people to join hands to bring down this Government which is only interested in destroying the State and not allowing the project works to be completed. The TDP is the only party which has a vision and “In 1999 I called for Vision-2020 which turned out to be true now,” he maintained.
The former chief minister wanted the youth to get ready to fight for their rights including getting employment. Making it clear that registering fake cases will not deter the youth from moving further, Mr Chandrababu said even the farming community is not happy since Minimum Support Price is not being paid for the farm products. “There are no welfare programmes and no development in the State but only the mafia is ruling the roost,” he said.
Maintaining that this Chief Minister is taking pleasure in the sufferings of the people, Mr Chandrababu demanded that justice be done to the project displaced and all the promises made by Mr Jagan to them be fulfilled.
