*Chandrababu misleading people on Polavaram waters*

Rajamahendravaram, September 2: YSRCP East Godavari district president and former minister Chelluboyina Venugopala Krishna said Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu was misleading people by projecting water lifted through the Purushothapatnam scheme as Polavaram water.

Speaking to the media here on Wednesday, he said the water now being taken to Anakapalli is not flowing by gravity from the Polavaram reservoir. Godavari water is being lifted through pumps at Purushothapatnam and released into the Polavaram Left Main Canal.

He said 79 per cent of the 181.5-km Left Main Canal works were completed during Dr YS Rajasekhara Reddy’s tenure, along with major land acquisition. YSR had also secured key environmental, forest, technical and financial clearances for Polavaram.

Venugopala Krishna said the YS Jagan Mohan Reddy government completed key works, including 48 radial gates, cofferdams, spill channel and approach channel works, besides taking forward the Left Main Canal works.

He said Uttarandhra Sujala Sravanthi received administrative approval for Rs 7,214.10 crore in 2009, while the Jagan government revised it to Rs 17,050.20 crore and initiated key works.

He asked why Polavaram was being restricted to 41.15 metres against the full FRL of 45.72 metres. He also sought clarity on water supply to Visakhapatnam data centres and questioned the increase in Left Main Canal estimates and retendering.