Speaker: Bajireddy Govardhan -Feb27,2012

YSR Congress Party on Monday demanded that the budget allocation to irrigation sector should be spent in full and complete pending projects instead of taking cover under the new GO which permits review of any project, if not taken up in two years.
“We demand that the Pranahita-Chevella, Polavaram and Dummugudem projects  should be completed with the Rs 2,300 crores allocated in the budget or else we will go to the people and agitate against the GO, which is taken out against the spirit of YSR’s pro-farmer image,” party spokesperson Bajireddy Govardhan told reporters here. 
The style of functioning of the State Government closely resembles to the nine-year term of N Chandrababu Naidu. While Naidu earmarked Rs 9,000 crores for irrigation not a single project was completed nor one acre of land was brought under cultivation, he said. 
YSR, on the other hand, brought 19 lakh acres more under cultivation, completed 12 projects and 21 others were partially completed and allocated Rs 45,000 crores. 
The new GO will give room for the State to review the important projects started by YSR and this can be seen as a conspiracy to deny giving due credit to him, he said adding that if the Government attempts to stall the three projects, YSRC will agitate in a big way.
During the three years after YSR, the Congress Government hardly gave any priority to irrigation. The amount allocated in the budget was not spent and this mode of functioning reminds us of TDP rule under N Chandrababu Naidu who took the anti-farmer stand and was rejected for the second term, he said.