Archive · 1 Sep 2026
Veligonda Phase-I Inauguration Spurs Andhra Water Credit Fight
Andhra Pradesh has started the first phase of a large project that brings Krishna River water to dry areas.
Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu inaugurated it on Monday.
Water will be stored in the Nallamala Sagar reservoir and then sent to farms and villages.
The first phase is expected to give drinking water to about four lakh people.
The articles give different figures for the farmland helped by this phase: 19,000 acres in one account and 1.19 lakh acres in another.
The full project is expected to irrigate 4.47 lakh acres and provide drinking water to 23 lakh people.
Thousands of families who lost land for the project received compensation, according to the government.
The YSR Congress Party says earlier governments did most of the difficult work.
The ruling TDP-led NDA says it completed the important remaining work and made the water release possible.
Chief Minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu inaugurated Phase-I of the Pula Subbaiah Veligonda Project on Monday.
The project released about 10.70 TMC of Krishna water into the Nallamala Sagar reservoir.
Phase-I is expected to provide drinking water to about four lakh people, while reported irrigation coverage differs between 19,000 and 1.19 lakh acres.
The completed project is projected to irrigate 4.47 lakh acres and provide drinking water to 23 lakh people across drought-prone districts.
YSR Congress Party and the TDP-led NDA disputed which governments deserve credit for completing the project.
- Who
- Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu inaugurated the project; the YSR Congress Party and TDP-led NDA are disputing credit for its completion.
- What
- Phase-I of the Pula Subbaiah Veligonda Project was inaugurated, and Krishna water was released into the Nallamala Sagar reservoir.
- When
- Monday; the project’s foundation stone was laid on March 5, 1996.
- Where
- At Gantavanipalli in Markapur district, Andhra Pradesh; the project is intended to serve areas of Markapuram, Prakasam, Nellore and Kadapa districts.
- Why
- To provide irrigation and drinking water in areas affected by inadequate rainfall, depleted groundwater, fluoride contamination and water shortages.
YSR Congress Party
TDP-led NDA Government
Who deserves credit?
YSR Congress Party
YSR Congress Party leaders, including YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, say the project was mainly advanced under the governments of YS Rajasekhara Reddy and YS Jagan Mohan Reddy. They say the difficult twin-tunnel work was completed during earlier administrations and accuse Naidu of rewriting the project’s history.
TDP-led NDA Government
The TDP-led NDA says the current government completed key pending works, overcame the final hurdles and made the project ready to release water.
Tunnel construction
YSR Congress Party
The YSR Congress Party claims 20.33 kilometres of tunnel work was completed during the YS Rajasekhara Reddy period, 6.686 kilometres during Naidu’s 2014–19 government and 10.568 kilometres during Jagan’s government.
TDP-led NDA Government
Nara Lokesh says Jagan is trying to claim credit for a project that remained incomplete and argues that the present government delivered the remaining important works.
Government performance
YSR Congress Party
The opposition emphasizes which administrations performed the major construction work before the inauguration.
TDP-led NDA Government
The government emphasizes that it has now released water and paid rehabilitation compensation, allowing the project to begin serving drought-hit communities.
- Water released
- About 10.70 TMC of Krishna water was released into the Nallamala Sagar reservoir.
- Phase-I drinking water
- About four lakh people are expected to receive drinking water.
- Phase-I irrigation
- The articles report differing figures of 19,000 acres and 1.19 lakh acres.
- Full-project capacity
- The completed project is expected to irrigate 4.47 lakh acres and provide drinking water to 23 lakh people.
- Major infrastructure
- The state said it completed 18.8 kilometres of twin tunnels and a 21.8-kilometre feeder canal.
- Displacement compensation
- The government said Rs 768 crore was credited to 6,206 displaced families, with an additional Rs 169 crore announced for eligible families left out of earlier surveys.
- Project cost and spending
- Naidu said the total cost exceeded Rs 10,200 crore and that his government had spent Rs 5,662 crore to bring the project to its current stage.
