Andhranews

Hyderabad, Sept. 24: Copious rainfall last week saw major sources of drinking water getting enough water to resume supply every day to the denizens of the twin cities. But lack of storage infrastructure coupled with the government’s apathy is making the precious commodity go waste. Singur, the major drinking water source, has received 5 tmc ft of water taking the level to 23.085 tmc ft, almost double the capacity last year. The quantum of water at Singur on September 23, 2005, was 12.690 tmc ft.

The capacity in Manjira rose from last year’s 1.256 tmc ft to 1.5 tmc ft while Osmansagar recorded 1.718 tmc ft as against last year’s 0.972 tmc ft. Though there is marginal improvement in the levels in Himayatsagar, water from the second phase of Krishna project is also set to flow into the city. The Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (HMWS&SB) has roped in the TCE Consulting Engineers Limited of the Tata Group to identify the water demand at various places of the twin cities for the construction of water storages. Based on their report, the board had proposed to construct 14 storage of 100 million litres (ml) capacity.

Board managing director Jawahar Reddy said that a detailed proposal had been sent to the Central government for allocation of funds. The estimated cost of water storages is Rs 67 crores while inlet and outlet pipelines would cost Rs 130 crores. “Funds for the construction of storages have been sanctioned. Funds for the pipeline is awaited and we are pursuing the same with the Centre,” Mr Jawahar Reddy said. The funds are borne by the State and Centre on a 65:35 ratio.

The board is drawing 75 mgd (million gallons per day) from Singur reservoir and an equal amount from the Krishna first phase, 45 mgd from Manjira, 16 mgd from Osmansagar and 11 mgd from Himayatsagar. Water board director (technical) M. Satyanarayana said that of the total demand of 290 mgd, the board was able to supply 222 mgd. He said that works on Krishna 2nd phase are on in full swing and another 90 mgd will be supplied once the project is completed.“We are working hard to complete the project by November 1, Andhra Pradesh Formation Day coinciding with the Board’s foundation day.” Mr Satyanarayana said.

Nainital/New Delhi/Hyderabad, Sept. 24: A day after TRS president K. Chandrasekhar Rao formalised his resignation from the Lok Sabha and walked out of the UPA, the Congress appeared readying to face him in the byelection as a victim than an aggressor. On Sunday, addressing a joint press conference after the conclusion of the two-day party chief ministers’ conference in Nainital, Congress president Sonia Gandhi said, “We have not closed doors on them. I don’t think we have deceived anybody. In the CMP, it is clearly stated that we have to develop a consensus. We will still continue to move towards a consensus. The Pranab Mukherjee committee is very much there.”

Earlier, AP chief minister Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy was much more circumspect. On Mr Rao’s resignation, he told select journalists, “Telangana is not just their issue. They cannot claim monopoly on Telangana. Our MPs and MLAs have also made representations on Telangana to the party high command. Whether Telangana will be formed or not will be decided by Mrs Sonia Gandhi.”

Asked about the TRS president’s assertion that the Karimnagar bypoll would be a referendum on Telangana, Mr Reddy said, “We are still considering. There is lot of time to go before the elections will be held.” He confirmed that he would reshuffle his cabinet on or before Dasara.

Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee is expected to communicate to the Election Commission abo-ut the vacancy of Karimnagar seat as early as on Monday, which would set in motion byelection process. The Bobbili seat in AP and Vidisha in Madhya Pradesh are vacant. It is expected that the three parliamentary byelections could be held together. According to sources close to Mr Rao, he will launch Palle Bata and intensive door-to-door campaign in Karimnagar.

The Telangana Jagran Sena, with a targeted membership of 1 lakh members, would be activated. In Hyderabad, several legislators and party supporters received Mr Chandrasekhar Rao and Mr A. Narendra at Begumpet airport. They would chalk out their strategy in the two-three days.TRS legislator E. Rajender addressing mediapersons said the the Karimnagar bypoll would be a fight between Telangana protagonists and anti-Telangana forces.

Hyderabad, Sept. 24: A man from Hyderabad accused of murdering his wife hanged himself at a hotel in Pondicherry on Sunday morning. The deceased was identified as G. Ramachandra Reddy, 30, a realtor and chit fund businessman of Lakshma Reddy Colony near Uppal.

Uppal SI B. Ravinder Reddy said, “On March 26, he took his wife Sujata to Pondicherry and killed her because he suspected her fidelity. Pondicherry police arrested him subsequently. He was released on conditional bail. A Pondicherry court asked him not to leave the State. He was staying in a hotel. On Sunday he hanged himself in a state of depression,” The police said arrangements are being made to being the body to city.

Hyderabad, Sept. 24: The estimates for strengthening of Godavari flood banks are far from reality as the consultants did not cover even half of the length of about 400km-flood bank for their preparation. Inquiries by this newspaper revealed that the consultants selected by irrigation adviser Sithapathi Rao either did not visit their respective sites at all or covered only portion of the area but submitted estimates for the entire area.

Even in areas where the consultants took cross-section of the bunds for preparing line estimates, the submersion of berms and slopes in the flood waters did not allow them to draw the real cross-section with accurate measurements. Significantly, ContecPMC, a consultancy picked up for preparing estimates for structures and 28.5 kms of Vainatheya Left Bank, did not visit a single structure out of 80 outfall sluices which require modernisation. “In fact the local officials have been directed to prepare the estimates for modernising outfall sluices and constructing river groins and handover the data to the consultant,” official sources told this correspondent.

The consultancy is owned by one R. Rajasekhar, who is the son of Mr Satyanarayana, a retired engineer and presently working as designs consultant to the State government.
“The basic flaw of the estimates submitted by the consultants is that at no point benchmarks were established with reference to the Mean Sea Level which is the core for arriving at the existing levels of flood ba-nks,” a senior official said.

Similarly, USA Consultants, which was alloted 80 km distance of Gauthami Right Bank, did not go to site but took the estimates prepared earlier for laying a WBM road on the bund for the first 20 kms from Doweleswaram. Sources said the consultant applied same measurements for the rest of the 60 km bank.

The S&HR consultant selected for preparing estimates for 90.6 kms of Vasista Left Bank did not take cross section beyond Ramaraju Lanka village and same is the case with Samadhura which did not cover good length of 90.20 km flood bank on Vasista Right.
Sources said the advisor convened a meeting with the consultants at the office of Engineer-in-Chief (hydrology) to where all the Section Officers of Head Works Division besides its Executive Engineer K Muralidhar were called from East and West Godavari districts. “For several cross-sections, the senior officials obtained rough measurements from us and put them on record,” an official who attended the meting admitted.

Hyderabad, Sept. 24: The Telugu Desam (TD) on Sunday rejected the Telangana Rashtra Samithi’s talk of Karimnagar Lok Sabha byelection a referendum on separate Telangana.
Saying that election to a single Lok Sabha seat cannot be a referendum on any issue, TD demanded that all MPs and MLAs of TRS resign and seek fresh mandate on Telangana plank to prove the prevalence of Telangana sentiment.

Addressing the media here, TD politburo member Nagam Janardhan Reddy alleged that Congress and TRS deceived the people of Telangana in the name separate Telangana. “Both the parties sought votes in the general elections with a promise to get statehood to Telangana region. But they ditched the people after coming to power. They have no moral right to seek votes again. People will teach them a lesson in the ensuing by-election,” Mr Janardhan Reddy observed.

People would not believe those who talk about separate Telangana, he said and expressed confidence that people would reward the TD for its developmental works during its regime. Another politburo member of the TD party, Kadiam Srihari, said his party would expose the deceitful tactics of TRS and Congress in the ensuing by-election.

Addressing a meeting of the party teachers wing in Hyderabad, Mr Srihari said that people would reject TRS, Congress and BJP as they had deceived them in the name of Telangana.

Hyderabad, Sept 24: Bharatiya Janata Party State president N. Indrasena Reddy on Sunday announced that party senior leader and former Union minister Ch. Vidyasagar Rao would contest in Karimnagar Lok Sabha bypoll. Ending speculation over the party’s move, the BJP president said that Mr Vidyasagar Rao held different positions from Karimnagar in the past 20 years and would contest in the bypoll also.

He, however, said that election in Karimnagar is not a referendum on Telangana and it would be considered as referendum only if all the peoples representatives of Telangana Rashtra Samithi resign to their posts and seek fresh election. Mr Reddy said senior party leader Bandaru Dattatreya would act as election in-charge for Karimanagar, while another party leader K. Haribabu would hold similar responsibilities for Bobbili Lok Sabha seat. The party will soon announce its candidate for Bobbili, he said.