The Hindu 12.11.2009
Mayor claims credit for water scheme
Staff Reporter
Administrative sanction kicks up row between Kanna and Rayapati groups
GUNTUR: After a brief lull, the war of words between the two powerful Congress groups headed by Major Industries Minister Kanna Lakshmi Narayana and Guntur MP Rayapati Sambasiva Rao has begun.
What stoked the storm this time was the administrative sanction given to the comprehensive drinking water project at an estimated cost of Rs.147 crores.
Mayor Rayapati Mohana Sai Krishna claimed the entire credit for the sanctioning of the scheme, while the Minister has been asserting that it was he who gave the final push to the project.
The Mayor on Wednesday shot off a series of questions giving details of the process involved in the preparation of the project. The Mayor said that after he had taken over from Mr. Nagaraju, the Detailed Project Reports of the water scheme, UGD and the stormwater drainage had not yet been prepared.
“I noticed a window of opportunity in the World Bank funded projects and strived to include the project in the WB project for selected Urban Local Bodies in the State,” he asserted. He also said that he had included the project cost in the annual budget 2009-2010. The World Bank gave in-principle nod for the project when its representative came to Hyderabad on May 5.
With Mr. Kanna Lakshminarayana, who represents Guntur-West constituency, eyeing a major pie in the selection of candidates in the polls, the Congress was expected to be embroiled in a stormy tussle.
It was expected to intensify with the elections to the Guntur Municipal Corporation slated to be held in 2010. The Minister on the other hand is expected to give his version on Thursday when he returns from Hyderabad.
