AP Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan said that the Narendra Modi-led NDA government at the Center has indicated approval of proposals at an estimated cost of Rs. 323 crore as a permanent solution to the long-standing coastal erosion problem in Uppada of Pithapuram constituency.
He said they are considering taking up this project through the Central Government and the National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA).
“In the last five years, the average annual erosion rate has been 1.23 metres, resulting in the loss of about 12 metres of coastline. This has had a severe impact on the nearby villages, especially the fishermen’s homes,” Pawan Kalyan said. Keeping in line with the NDA’s election promise, he said they are ready to start the construction work as soon as the necessary permissions are obtained.
The state government led by Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu has submitted the proposals to the Union Home Ministry through the NDMA. Pawan Kalyan expressed hope that the victims will get the relief soon they have always wanted.
During the last elections in AP, Pawan Kalyan came to the notice of the coastal area being severely eroded near Uppada village, which falls under the Pithapuram constituency where he is contesting. Pawan assured that if he is elected as an MLA, he will talk to the BJP-led central government and save the coastal area from erosion.
To this extent, he has prepared and sent proposals to the center to build a coastal protection wall here. Due to the erosion of the coastal area at Uppada, the houses of the people of this village are merging into the sea. Not only that, the fishermen here are not sleeping because they do not know when the sea will come and drown their houses or merge with it.
If a protective wall is constructed at Uppada with funds provided by the Center, the threat to the village from the sea will be eliminated. It is expected that the coast will not be eroded, especially during storms and even by sea tides.