Polavaram Irrigation Project gap closure works gain steam

VIJAYAWADA: Despite the constraints in the clearance of bills of Polavaram Irrigation Project (PIP), the water resources department is working to complete the critical works of the project before the onset of monsoon and flooding season.

The works related to the closure of the gap in the upstream cofferdam will begin this week and the officials, along with the executing agency, have targeted to complete the pending works in the next two months. A senior official said that the works in reach three in the upstream will be launched after the water from Sileru, which is a supply for Godavari delta, is stopped for a brief period.

“Once the water is stopped for a week or ten days, the works can be taken up. So far, the works are going as per our plan despite financial issues. We aim to complete most of the critical works before flood season,” he added. While the works in reach three are expected to be completed by end of June, those in reach four will be concluded by July. Similarly, works in reach one and three in downstream are also likely to be completed by July.