Yettinahole a major scam, says Poojary; slams DVS

Mangaluru, Sep 21: In connection with the Yettinahole project that has seen much controversy and opposition  from several quarters in Dakshina Kannada district, veteran Congress leader B Janardhan Poojary said that the project was a major scam to tarnish the image of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, which was part of a big conspiracy to destabilize the state government.

Addressing mediapersons at a press conference here on Monday, he said that certain vested interests including a few elected representatives and officers had been making attempts to misguide the chief minister of Karnataka in connection with the Yettinahole project, in order to destabilize the government. He demanded a thorough probe by the CID in this regard.

Lambasts DVS

Mr Poojary further alleged that former chief minister DV Sadananda Gowda, during whose tenure the Yettinahole project had been granted administrative approval by the state cabinet, was trying to taint the present CM Siddaramaiah by making misleading statements in support of the project. “Is Sadananda Gowda aware that nearly Rs 30,000 crore might be wasted to fully complete the project in order to transport 1 TMC water to the parched districts? Have he read the Detailed Project Report of the concerned project? Did his government obtain clearances from the forest department when the project is in violation of the Forest Act?” he lambasted.

He rebuked Sadananda Gowda for his reported statement that the former was opposing Yettinahole project for his political survival. “Mr Gowda is misleading the people of Kolar, Chikkaballapur and Tumakur districts, merely for votes. He will destroy the livelihood of people depending on Nethravathi river. I will not indulge in cheap politics as he has alleged. I am doing this for the survival of people in the coastal region,” he said, warning that power was not permanent.

Mr Poojary also criticized Congress leader and MLA U T Khader for making irresponsible statements on the Yettinahole project without studying the project report.

He also alleged that the tender for the project had been given to Meghana Constructions, which was headed by a highly corrupt officer Kapil Mohan, who had been earlier raided by enforcement agencies. 

"Only 0.85 tmc water available for transportation"

He questioned the logic behind spending over Rs 13,000 crore to transport merely 0.85 TMC to Kolar, Chikkaballapur and Tumakur districts. According to a team of ecological experts from IISc, only an estimated 9.7 TMC water was available from the Yettinahole catchment area and not 24 TMC as projected by Karnataka Neeravari Nigam Limited. Out of the 9.7 TMC, over 8 TMC was required for local needs while only 0.85 TMC will be available for transportation, he pointed.

Harikrishna Bantwal, Mahabala Marla, Suresh Ballal and others were present on the occasion.