Ongole: Water Resources Minister Nimmala Ramanaidu announced that the Pula Subbaiah Veligonda Project will be completed by 2026. He inspected the project’s works by going up to 18 kms into Tunnel-II on Friday, reviewing complex lining operations.

During the inspection, he conducted a review meeting with irrigation officials, agencies, and local farmers to assess the project’s progress. He clarified that an additional Rs 3,000-Rs 4,000 crore would be required to complete the remaining works, including distributary canals. He criticised former Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, calling him a ‘brand ambassador of deceit’ for falsely claiming the project was complete and dedicating it to the nation prematurely.

Since the coalition government assumed power, the minister claimed that they completed 2,200 cubic meters of concrete work at head regulator and finished 3 kms of challenging tunnel lining in just 18 months. Currently, four gantries are completing 12 metres of lining work daily, with plans to increase capacity to meet targets, he announced.

He said the feeder canal has completed 28,000 cubic metres of hard rock work out of the 45,000 cubic metres required. He explained tenders worth Rs 456 crore for feeder canal lining and retaining wall construction have been finalised, with work scheduled to begin this December. He emphasised that Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu is personally monitoring the project’s progress, ensuring it meets the 2026 deadline to fill Nallamala Sagar with Krishna waters.

Markapuram MLA Kandula Narayana Reddy, Yerragondapalem TDP in-charge Guduri Erixion Babu, engineering officials, and site engineering staff also participated in the programme.