(Photo available)
One can hear sounds of heavy machinery moving here and there from anywhere in the village. The earth movers are pushing the huge rocks and boulders to form the bund wall while few hundred metres away labour are working to fill up the gaps with small rocks as part of building the bund. Hundreds of lorries come one after the another and dump their heavy load of red and black soil and small and medium size rock chips to build the bund for Mallannasagar.
The work on Mallannasagar is going on at a fast pace and officials have fixed a target of completing work on the the by May-end and to complete the revetment work by July maximum to ensure that the reservoir is more or less ready by the beginning of rainy season.
Out of the eight villages that are going to be submerged under the Mallannasagar, oustees from four villages — Singaram and Erravalli in Kondapaka mandal and Rampur and Lakshmapur in Toguta mandal — had already vacated their homes and the bund works is going on at a fast pace in these village. In the four other villages — Vemulaghat, Etigaddakishtapur, Pallepahad and Brahmana Banjerpally — many of the displaced persons are yet to vacate the village. Those who had already left their homes in the villager are yet to be handed over permanent accommodation at Mutrajpally, though few families have already shifted.
The officials involved with the construction say they have fixed a target of completing bund work by May-end. “People from Vemulaghat, Etigaddakishtapur and Pallepahad are yet to leave their village. We cannot take up the bund work there as the construction of the bund would close the approach roads to these villages. Further, there are some structure patch works like sluice at package 17, 18 and 19, Mission Bhagiratha works and Kondapochamma canal works,” explained an official, on condition of anonymity.
As construction of revetment work involves large amount manpower, the work may be complete by the end of July before commencement of rainy season.
“We are being told that the water would be released into Mallannsagar in the next three months or so. We will be forced to leave our homes before that, in one way or the other,” said a villager, requesting anonymity.
