Amaravati: The central government will present the 2021-22 budget in Parliament on Monday and the national project polavaram has become a matter of discussion. The state government is working on an action plan to complete the polavaram by 2022. This season, i.e. godavari floods, the work to be completed is estimated to be Rs 10,000 crore. The state government has sent proposals to the Central Jal Shakti and Finance Departments to grant funds to that extent. Polavaram has been requested to set up a 'revolving fund' along with budget. Irrigation experts say that the release of funds as needed will pave the way for decades of polavaram.

In the wake of the state's division, the central government announced polavaram as a national project in 2014 and promised to complete the 100 per cent cost. In 2014-15, 2015-16 and 2016-17, the budget has been allocated. However, the polavaram construction was handed over to the previous government during the TDP regime on September 8, 2016. The polavaram project authority (PPA) will be released by nwda (National Water Resources Development Agency) from THE LFTF (Long Term Irrigation Fund) set up at NABARD (National Agricultural Rural Development Bank). Polavaram has not been allocated separately in any budget from 2017-18 to 2020-21. The state government has been reimbursing the funds spent on the project by taking a loan from NABARD.

The state government spent Rs 5,135.87 crore before the Polavaram project was declared as a national project on April 1, 2014. The CWC (Central Water Commission) and TAC (Technical Advisory Board) have approved the project's estimated cost of Rs 55,656.87 crore as per 2017-18 prices. The Revised Cost Committee has fixed the estimated estimated cost of Rs 47,725.74 crore. Polavaram irrigation cost will be Rs 51,532.23 crore as approved by the CWC TAC. The state government has spent Rs 12,295.93 crore since April 1, 2014. Of these, Rs 10,848.38 crore was released to the Ppa by the Central Government and Rs 10,741.76 crore was released to the state government. The Centre still has to reimburse Rs 1,554.17 crore. Considering the amount reimbursed by the Centre, the Centre will have to sanction Rs 35,654.60 crore for polavaram in the form of irrigation expenditure.

The state government has already sent proposals to the Centre to release Rs 10,000 crore for the work to be completed before the flood to Godavari by June. According to the Reorganisation Act, polavaram, a national project, has been allocated by the budget. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat have appealed to the cm YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on the same issue. If the funds are sanctioned in the form of a revolving fund, the polavaram work can be completed within the prescribed time frame, so that the estimated cost can not be prevented.

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