Workers are backbone of part y: Babu

HYDERABAD: Telugu Desam Party (TDP) president N Chandrababu Naidu said that he would allot 50 per cent of his time to party workers and the remaining time to people. In an informal chat with partymen from West Godavari, Guntur, Chittoor, Nalgonda and Rangareddy district at NTR Bhavan here today, Naidu said that workers are the backbone for the party and they would be given due recognition in the party. Despite some senior leaders ditching the party, workers always remained with the party and striving hard to strengthen the party, Naidu said.
He recalled that several TD workers have been killed by Congress and false cases were foisted against party workers in several district including Anantapur.
Assembly segment-wise meetings will be held on October 27, 30 and 31 across the State. Organisational matters, membership drive, floods and drought will be discussed in the meetings. The leaders will also analyse the political situation in the State and chalk out future course of action.
Meanwhile, TDP minority cell which met here today under the chairmanship of its president Ameer Babu wanted Muslims to support TDP in the forthcoming Greater Hyderaba.

Speedy repair of Sunkesula dam will save crops: Chandrababu

Hyderabad: Telugu Desam Party (TDP) president N Chandrababu Naidu on Monday urged that repair works of Sunkesula dam on river Tungabhadra be begun immediately to save standing crop in over 2.5 lakh acres and ensure drinking water supply to over 300 habitations.



In a letter to Chief Minister K Rosaiah, the Leader of Opposition said repair and restoration works on the dam were yet to commence after the recent floods left the structure badly damaged.

"The delay in beginning the works is due to the protest by villagers of Sunkesula and Rajoli who are not allowing the works to be taken up till their demands are met. But, Sunkesula is the source of drinking water for over 300 habitations in the region while more than 2.5 lakh acres of crop under the KC Canal irrigation system is also dependent on this water. Unless the works are completed on a war-footing, more than Rs 500 crore worth crops will be lost," Chandrababu said.

"I, therefore, request you to direct the authorities concerned to commence the Sunkesula works immediately by amicably sorting out problems of the affected people," the TDP chief requested the Chief Minister.

Bureau Report

Prakasam barrage bracing up for great deluge

HYDERABAD/VIJAYAWADA: After Krishna’s tributary Tungabhadra turned Kurnool into a hell, now the Krishna river is all set to ensure a repeat of the nightmare in Vijayawada and several villages in Krishna district.
With inflows into Srisailam and Nagarjuna Sagar not abating and the officials letting out huge volumes of water downstream of the river, Prakasam barrage appears to be bracing for the great deluge.
The water that is being released into the Krishna from Nagarjuna Sagar is now on its way to Prakasam Barrage and by night fall, the water might start hitting the barrage.
With the discharge being over 10 lakh cusecs at Srisailam and seven to eight lakh cusecs at Nagarjuna Sagar, the threat of inundation is live for Krishna district.
This apart, several streams join the Krishna a little ahead of Prakasam barrage with signifacant volumes of water.
Apprehending inundation on a large scale, the Krishna district administration has already shifted about one lakh population to about 12 relief centres, most of them in Vijayawada alone and they are making efforts to move more number of people to safer places.
The Prakasam Barrage has the capacity of handling inflows of about 10 lakh cusecs and a litte over but any inflows more than this might become a problem.
Already the officials are letting out whatever water is available in the reservoir which is always impounded to a height of 12 to help Vijayawada Thermal Power station (VTPS) draw it for use as a coolant in the condensors of the power generation equipment. As the deluge has never been this huge, the officials are letting out more water downstream so that by the time Nagarjuna Sagar water reaches Prakasam barrage there is enough room. The VTPS has no immediate threat of lack of water to run its thermal units since they have a separate channel built recently and it could use it for the puropse of cooling the condensors.
The met department’s forecast too being very grim for the next 24 hours with widespread rains lashing the State, the officials are worried how long this nightmare would last and when the inflows would abate. ``Before the inflows stop, the water would have done a damage beyond imaginable proportions,’’ an official said.