₹30,156-Crore Amarajeevi Jaladhara Project Launched in Andhra Pradesh

Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan on Monday launched the Jal Jeevan Mission–Amarajeevi Jaladhara project in Proddatur, with an estimated investment of ₹30,156 crore, aimed at ensuring safe drinking water for households across Andhra Pradesh. The leaders also unveiled a special project pylon detailing the initiative.

Speaking at a public meeting, Chandrababu said the government was committed to finding a permanent solution to drinking water problems and would spend around ₹30,000 crore over the next two years to provide water connections to 27 lakh additional families.

Pawan Kalyan said drinking water should not become a political issue, stressing that the government must serve people irrespective of their region or political affiliation. He said the programme aimed to ensure water security in every village and safe drinking water for every household.

The project will cover 24,601 habitations, strengthen 61.60 lakh existing tap connections and add another 27.36 lakh new connections, benefiting an estimated 3.27 crore people. Across the state, 50,315 works are being taken up, including single-village schemes, retrofitting projects and 32 multi-village schemes.

The government has allocated ₹1,624 crore for water-quality monitoring, while another ₹1,600 crore has been earmarked for maintaining treatment plants, pump houses, reservoirs and pipelines. Pawan said 340 filter beds had already been restored at a cost of ₹35 crore, with ₹88 crore allocated for another 552 beds.

The Deputy Chief Minister announced ₹280 crore for Pulivendula, aimed at completing an unfinished drinking water scheme covering 299 villages across seven mandals. Special attention is also being given to drought-prone areas of Rayalaseema and regions including Uddanam, Markapuram, Punganur and Palamaneru.

Chandrababu criticised the previous YSRCP government, alleging inadequate spending on Jal Jeevan Mission works and accusing it of relying on borewells rather than developing permanent water sources. He also levelled allegations concerning the Vivekananda Reddy murder case, liquor policy and Group-I examination evaluations.

Chandrababu said the coalition government had secured an extension of the Jal Jeevan Mission until 2028 after discussions with the Centre. He also said the government was working to utilise Godavari waters to transform Rayalaseema and complete the Polavaram project.