Veligonda Project works at sluggish pace

Ongole: The Poola SubbaiahVeligonda project, which can solve the drinking and irrigation water problems for Prakasam, Nellore and Kadapa districts, has been crossing deadlines for completion due to apathy by the contractors, officials and the government. The government revised the cost of project and is changing the contractors to meet the deadline now.

Highlights:

• Chandrababu Naidu laid foundation for the project 22 years ago on March 5, 1996
• Cost of the project went up from Rs 5,150 crore to Rs 7,428 crore
• The project is expected to irrigate nearly 4.47 lakh acres and 15.25 lakh people get drinking water in 737 villages in 23 mandals spread over Prakasam, Nellore and Kadapa districts
• Govt planning to allot some works to new contractors

When completed, the Veligonda Project will draw 43.58 tmc ft of flood water from the backwaters of Srisailam reservoir. The water passes through two tunnels for more than 18km length and fills NallamalaSagar with 10 tmc ft dead storage capacity, to be constructed by closing three natural gaps between hills at Sunkesula, Gottipadiya and Kakarla.

Once flood water received, the project provides water to nearly 4.47 lakh acres of land and 15.25 lakh people get drinking water in 737 villages in 23 mandals of Prakasam, 5mandals of Nellore and 2mandals of Kadapa districts.

Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu laid foundation to the project 22 years ago on March 5, 1996 with a promise to complete the project in 5 years. But, the works were started in August 2005.

Since then the contractors of the Tunnel I received five times extension of time while those of Tunnel II got three times extension of time. In the latest extension orders, government wanted the Tunnel I must be completed by August 2018 and the Tunnel II by May 2019.

As per the data provided by the engineering officials, about 10.67 km in the 18.82km of the Tunnel I and 6.5 km in the 18.84km of the Tunnel II were bored by June 2009. They also said that nearly 12km of Tunnel I and 8.7km of the Tunnel II are completed by 2014. By December 2017, they explained that about 14.94km of the Tunnel I and 10.70km of the Tunnel II are completed. Now, in February 2018, about 15.1km of the Tunnel I and 10.7km of the Tunnel II are completed.

In the meantime, as per the demand by the contractors, the government revised the total estimates from Rs 5,150 crores to Rs 7,428 crores.

Showing the reason that the contractors are not performing up to the expectation, the government deleted work of 3.6km from Tunnel I and 8.07km from the Tunnel II and asked the contractors to stop the boring of Tunnel I at 15.20km and Tunnel II at 10.82km
R Reddiah, superintending engineer of the Prakasam district said, “The government has given number of opportunities to the existing contractors; but they failed.

We are about to finalise the new contractors and they will start work soon as per the revised estimation of the project. The engineering experts say that whoever be the contractor, the works will be delayed due to replacement of drilling tools, belts and other equipment.

By Naresh Nandam