Vijayawada: Minister for water resources Nimmala Ramanaidu said the state government would complete the Polavaram irrigation project and supply water to Rayalaseema and north Andhra regions. The minister responded to the questions by the YSRCP members in Legislative Council on Tuesday.

He said Polavaram left canal works would be completed by June 2025 and Godavari water will be taken to north Andhra by July, 2025. “The TDP government had completed 72 per cent works of Polavaram project by 2019 but the YSRCP government completed only two per cent works in five years of its rule. The YSRCP government had betrayed the people of north Andhra and Rayalaseema by decreasing the water flowing capacity of right canal from 17,560 cusecs to 11,650 cusecs and left canal capacity from 17,500 cusecs to 8122 cusecs,” he said.

The minister said there were no words like Phase-I and Phase-II and 41.15 metre and 45.72 metre during the TDP rule till 2019. He said these words were began to be used by the YSRCP government after it came to power in 2019.

Ramanaidu made it clear that the NDA coalition government would construct the Polavaram with height of 45.72 metre. The TDP government had provided rehabilitation to 12,000 families and sanctioned compensation of Rs 830 crore. Again Rs 990 crore was released after it came to power recently.

He reiterated that the government would supply drinking and irrigation water to north Andhra and Rayalaseema regions by linking rivers and completing Polavaram project.