Water projects: CM all praise for Satya Sai Trust

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The Hindu, Andhra Pradesh

Online edition of India's National Newspaper

Friday, Feb 13, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Water projects: CM all praise for Satya Sai Trust

By the Staff Reporter

 

PUTTAPARTHI, FEB. 12. The Chief Minister, N. Chandrababu Naidu, has

appreciated the Sri Satya Sai Central Trust for taking up several

projects for the benefit of people in Andhra Pradesh and other

States.

 

He said that the Rs. 200-crore Sai Ganga project, a part of the

Telugu Ganga project, has enabled supply of drinking water to Chennai

in assured quantities. He thanked the gracious support of Satya

Saibaba for the drinking water projects, adding that the Prime

Minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, too felt happy when told about the

projects.

 

In an impromptu press conference at Sri Satya Sai airport here on

Thursday, he said that the lining of Kandaleru-Poondi canal,

improvement to the vulnerable sections in Kandaleru reservoir,

revetment, silt clearance and other works taken up under the Sai

Ganga project had enabled supply of assured quantity of drinking

water to Chennai.

 

Revetment to Kandaleru reservoir, cement linking to K-P canal,

construction of two escape structures to let out excessive inflow

into Kandaleru during floods, construction of 50 inlets for feeding

rainwater into the reservoir form the nearby hilly region,

strengthening of approach channels in the reservoir belt,

construction of RCC walls across slopes, silt clearance in K-P canal

to a length of about 50 km were among other works taken up with the

help of Rs. 200 crores assistance extended by the Satya Sai Trust, he

said.

 

The present population of Chennai (about 50 lakhs) would actually

require 942 MLD of water but the sources in Tamil Nadu were able to

supply only 250 MLD. The gap in the demand was being met from the

supply of water through Telugu Ganga canal and the works taken up as

part of Sai Ganga project. Besides, the Trust had also completed

drinking water projects for 730 villages in Anantapur district at a

cost of Rs. 300 crores benefiting 12-lakh people, projects in 179

villages in Medak district at a cost of Rs. 27 crores benefiting 4.5-

lakh people and another 141 villages in Mahbubnagar district at a

cost of Rs. 26 crores quenching the thirst of 3.5 lakh people.

 

In all, the Trust had extended Rs. 553 crores for drinking water

projects, he said.

 

Mr. Naidu also pointed out that a Rs. 30-crore project to improve

drinking water supply to 1,000 villages in Chittoor district was in

progress. It was taken up under Janmabhoomi with the Satya Sai Trust

contributing 36 per cent of the cost and the Government the remaining

64 per cent.

 

To a query on the lack of water allocation to the Satya Sai Water

Supply Scheme in Anantapur district, he said the scheme would be

given water from the 5 tmcft of allocation to the Penna Ahobilam

balancing reservoir along with the drinking water project to the

water starved villages in Penukonda, Dharmavaram, Madakasira,

Hindupur and Gorantla constituencies. He also assured sufficient

funds for the development of Puttaparthi as a global spiritual and

tourism centre.

 

No politics, says CM

Mr. Naidu in contrast to his earlier press conferences chose not to

talk politics and preferred to focus on development.

 

Speaking to newspersons after seeing off Mr. Vajpayee at the Satya

Sai airport he said, "No politics please. I won't speak any politics

and you don't asking me anything related to politics. We will talk

only development."

 

He, however, discussed politics at Prashanti Nilayam, the abode of

Satya Saibaba, when he called on Mr. Vajpayee and also had a meeting

with the TDP leaders of the district on Wednesday night.

 

His also reportedly had a brief chat with Paritala Ravindra, while

driving down to the Sai Srinivasa guesthouse from the airport along

with Mr. Ravindra.

 

Source:

http://www.hindu.com/2004/02/13/stories/2004021301330500.htm