In an effort to draw national attention to the slew of issues facing Bhadrachalam and absence of an elected body for the major gram panchayat, the CPI (M) town committee is all set to launch a five-day padayatra in the temple town from February 11.
Christened as ‘Praja Chaitanya Padayatra’, the mass contact programme is mainly aimed at galvanising public opinion to bring into spotlight the imminent submergence threat posed by the Polavaram project, under construction in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh, to the Telangana’s famous temple town, said CPI (M) town secretary G Swamy.
“If the Polavaram project is constructed as per the existing design envisaging the height of the dam at 150 feet, almost half of the temple town of Bhadrachalam is bound to face submergence threat from Godavari backwaters of the project, he said quoting some “experts’ contention.”
Former Bhadrachalam MP Dr Midiam Babu Rao will flag off the padayatra in the presence of veteran CPI (M) leader and former MLA Kunja Bojji, the party State committee member B Ravi Kumar and others at AMC colony in the temple town on Thursday. The padayatra will prominently highlight the “utter neglect” of the temple town by both the State and Central governments, Mr Swamy said deploring that the TRS government failed to fulfil its promise to release ₹ 100 crore for the development of the temple town till date.
“The BJP dispensation at the Centre has failed to take initiative to bring the five gram panchayats situated near Bhadrachalam, those earlier merged with the residual AP in 2014, back to Telangana’s tribal heartland, which is imperative for the development of Bhadrachalam,” he said.
Lack of an elected body for Bhadrachalam major gram panchayat is taking a toll on the development of the temple town, he lamented, blaming the government for the present ambiguity over the status of the temple town.
