Polavaram Mumpu Vyathireka Porata Committee To Fight Against Polavaram

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HYDERABAD: Demanding cancellation of Polavaram Ordinance and change in the design of the dam to avoid inundation of villages in Khammam district, members of Polavaram Mumpu Vyathireka Porata Committee told a press conference on Sunday that they will organise “Chalo Parliament” on July 14 and meet the President and the Prime Minister on July 16 and 17 to represent their problems.

MLA Sunnam Rajaiah, CPI(M) and convener of the committee demanded that programmes being implemented in the seven villages of Khammam, which are proposed to be transferred to Andhra Pradesh, should be taken care of by Telangana state government. He said the design of the dam should be changed in such a way that the villages will not be inundated.

Stating that the problem is not limited to inundation of the villages, V Venkataramaiah, CPI(ML) New Democracy said the Telangana government will loose control over Godavari river. “If K Chandrasekhar Rao is determined, then he should decide in the Cabinet that they will restore the seven villages to Telangana state. They should clearly state that they will pay salaries of government employees working in the villages and will take care of the welfare programmes there,” he said.

People in the seven villages have taken up protests and relay fasts for the past few days and they will continue the agitation, said K Ranga Raju, Khammam district TJAC convener. “The protests and fasts will continue till the ordinance is canceled. From Sunday, people will take to streets to protest the same,” he said.

The committee is also going to hold a dharna at Indira Park here on July 11.

If Needed, will Approach SC, says V Hanumantha Rao

Protesting against the issuance of the ordinance allowing the merger of seven mandals of Bhadrachalam division in Khammam district into Andhra Pradesh, senior Congress leader and Rajya Sabha MP V Hanumantha Rao said he would raise issue in the ensuing session of Parliament. Speaking to mediapersons at the Telangana Congress Legislature Party office here on Sunday, VHR said injustice was being meted out to Telangana by awarding the seven mandals to Andhra Pradesh. “I will not only raise the issue in Parliament, but also approach the Supreme Court if required,” VHR said and advised Prime Minister Narendra Modi to be wary of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu. “Naidu reacted immediately when the Telangana government announced that it will reimburse the fee only to local students but remained silent when injustice was being meted out to Telangana on the Polavaram issue,” the Rajya Sabha MP said.