ANDHRA PRADESH

Congress challenges CM for open debate

Amaravati: Andhra Pradesh Congress president N. Raghuveera Reddy on 8th January, 2017 dashed off an open letter to Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu asking him to come for an open debate on the irrigation projects in the State.

The APCC chief accused the Chief Minister of making tall claims on irrigation projects including the prestigious Polavaram, which were all started by the previous Congress government. He said that the Congress, which came to power in 2004 under the leadership of late Dr. Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy, had actually initiated 91 irrigation projects, including 45 pending projects, under Jalayagnam scheme. The Polavaram project, too, had been started by the Congress government, he said and sought to remind the Chief Minister that Polavaram was made a national project and was included in the AP Reorganization Act, 2013.

Raghuveera Reddy said that the Chandrababu Naidu government had increased the cost estimates of several irrigation projects to benefit TDP leaders, who won the contract and executed the works. The enhanced cost had gone into the pockets of the TDP leaders, including Chandrababu Naidu, from the State exchequer, he alleged. He further accused the Chief Minister of earning around Rs. 40,000 crores from various irrigation projects that were initiated by the Congress government. “You are only inaugurating the projects that were started by the Congress and making tall claims,” the Congress leader said in his open letter