Monsoons come and go, but work on the stormwater drain project, which was launched in Vijayawada during the Telugu Desam Party’s (TDP) tenure in 2016, has hardly made any headway in the past three years and non-payment of dues is being cited as the reasons for it.
Even a two-hour spell of rain brings the city to its knees, making commuting a nightmarish experience for the denizens. Moreover, the drains constructed as part of the project remain incomplete and open till date, posing a danger to the children.
At least three incidents of children and adults falling into the open drains were reported between January 2023 and March 2024.
The project was conceptualised as a solution to the problems of water-logging and flooding in the city. It was undertaken by the Public Health and Municipal Engineering Department (PHMED). The State government received ₹461.04 crore under One Time Special Finance Assistance from the Centre and the contract for the work was given to Larsen & Toubro.
“There was no progress on the work for two years until 2019. The contractor abandoned the project midway in 2020 due to non-payment of dues,” says M. Anjaneyulu of the Taxpayers’ Association.
As per information shared by an official from the PHMED, the government has to pay ₹25 crore to the L&T to clear the bill. “Until the government clears the dues, the project will remain incomplete,” the official says on the condition of anonymity.
At the time when the project was halted, work on 66.1 km of the proposed 142 km of major drains was completed, while 187.4 km of the proposed 302 km of minor drains was completed.
Now, with the elections around the corner, all the candidates of the ruling YSRCP and Opposition TDP-JSP-BJP alliance and INDIA bloc have made it a point during their campaigns.
“Vijayawada has a unique landscape with hills, canals and a river (Krishna). In a city like this, we need to have a proper infrastructure. The successive governments have failed in addressing the people’s issues here,” says Ch. Babu Rao, the MLA candidate of the Left-Congress alliance in the Vijayawada Central constituency.
“After an eight-year-long wait, people are not very hopeful that the project would be completed even in two years. It remains to be seen if the campaign points will translate into action,” says Mr. Anjaneyulu.
