AP Assembly row over Pattiseema Project?

What is the cause of heated debates, exchanges and expletives in the AP Assembly?

It is nothing but due to the fact that Chandrababu Naidu offered Rs.286 crore bonus (16.9 %) to the contractor of Pattiseema for timely or even early completion of the Rs.1300 crore project.

Jagan and Chandrababu are caught in the house exchanging pointed comments on the huge amount of money given to a contractor when the state was so heavily in financial crisis.

The tenders by the Mega Krishna Reddy Company has been accepted and awarded the project on a blitzkrieg basis as the Government wants the project completed at any cost. So much so that it has even braved the Assembly debate with Jagan on an equally fierce note.

While the TDP insiders and Government believe that they want to cut YSRC power block in Rayalaseema by providing water to the Rayalaseema districts from water drawn from Godavari River via the Pattiseema lift irrigation project. “Jagan stalling project to bring water to Rayalaseema" is the TDP campaign against him.

To anyone, it appears that the issue is not one of watering Rayalseema or even the exploitation of Godavari water being wasted into the sea. The entire tendering process if MEIL though for a higher bid is the moot question. Questions are being raised over the kick backs for the fast tracking the project. (Bid, grant and process completed in fast 45 days).

Sources in secretariat contend that the kickbacks for the CM and the irrigation minister Uma Maheswar Rao have already been through and only that of others in the line of priority is still due.

So it appears both Jagan and Chandrababu are putting up a great drama in the Assembly for just a piece of the cake in the Pattiseema project. The closest inference drawn is that of the Jalayagnam project of YSR where huge kicks backs had been allegedly reported.