Tadepalli: Former Minister Ambati Rambabu launched a scathing attack on Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, accusing him of causing significant delays and cost overruns in the Polavaram project. Speaking at the YSR Congress Party’s central office on Saturday, Ambati challenged Naidu to a public debate on the issue, asserting that the delays were primarily due to mistakes made during Naidu’s tenure.
Ambati highlighted that although the Central government was responsible for completing the project, Naidu took control and mishandled it, leading to strategic errors, including the collapse of the diaphragm wall. He claimed that this collapse was a direct result of Naidu’s lack of understanding and hasty actions, which subsequently led to delays and increased costs.
The former minister pointed out that Naidu and his supporters had unfairly blamed the collapse on then-Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy. However, Ambati clarified that the damage to the diaphragm wall, which extended 485 meters, had been assessed during their government’s tenure with the help of international experts. The findings, submitted to the Central Water Commission on August 12th, confirmed that the construction of the diaphragm wall and spillway should not have been undertaken simultaneously, as Naidu had done in 2016.
Ambati also noted that the expert committee’s report revealed that the foundation of the upper cofferdam was damaged during the 2018 floods. He criticized Naidu for failing to repair the diaphragm wall before continuing construction, leading to severe seepage issues.
