Water Resources Minister announces ₹169 crore ex gratia for Veligonda project displaced persons

Water Resources Minister Nimmala Rama Naidu on Friday said the State government would pay an ex gratia of ₹169 crore to residents displaced by the Poola Subbaiah Veligonda Project who turned 18 after the 2019 cut-off date.

The government had already paid ₹905 crore under the R&R package to 7,027 households, he said.

Addressing the media at the Markapuram Collectorate, Mr. Rama Naidu said Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu had adopted a humanitarian approach in extending the ex gratia to those who had attained the age of 18 after the cut-off date. The government had received 1,800 grievances seeking inclusion in the list of eligible beneficiaries, and the payments would be made after a thorough verification of the claims.

“The government is taking measures to ensure that every eligible person receives the ex gratia. We will continue the process until justice is ensured for the last displaced person, along with supplying water to the project. We will ensure that no injustice is done to the displaced persons anywhere,” he said.

Mr. Rama Naidu said the long-cherished 30-year-old dream of completing the project, aimed at meeting the drinking and irrigation water needs of the drought-prone regions of Markapuram, YSR Kadapa and SPSR Nellore districts, was set to become a reality. The project would be inaugurated and dedicated to the nation by the Chief Minister on August 31, 2026, he said.

He described the project as a “golden chapter” in the development of Andhra Pradesh and credited the district administration, particularly Collector M. Vijaya Sunitha, with playing a key role in completing the project and implementing the R&R package.

The Chief Minister had also directed officials to provide one month’s supply of ration kits to the displaced households, Mr. Rama Naidu said.