AP CM miffed with Centre over its 'stand' on Polavaram project

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu seems miffed with the Centre which has ordered stalling of tenders for selecting a new contractor for executing some works related to Polavaram project, and said he was "observing restraint" only because the BJP is an TDP ally.
Naidu said he would hand over the Polavaram project (for execution) to the Centre if it persisted with its current stand.
TDP is a part of the NDA government at the Centre while the BJP is a coalition partner in the Chandrababu government in Andhra Pradesh.
The Chief Minister's reaction came after Union Water Resources Secretary wrote a letter to AP Chief Secretary asking that the tenders called by the Chandrababu Naidu government for selecting a new contractor for the Polavaram spillway and spill channel works, be stalled forthwith.

"If they (Centre) want, we will stop the process. If they continue with this type of stand, I will greet them with folded hands and hand over the project," Naidu told reporters in an informal chat in the Assembly lobby this evening.
"We are observing restraint only because we are allies. I am unable to understand why these many problems are being created (for Polavaram)," he asked.

"I tried speaking to Gadkari (Union Water Resources Minister) but was told he is in London. I will speak to him once he returns. I will also meet Prime Minister over this," the chief minister said.

Naidu said he was ready to take the opposition parties in the state to the Centre on the issue.
Earlier, speaking in the Assembly on the implementation of AP Reorganisation Act-2014, Naidu said his government was ready to hand over the Polavaram project (for execution) to the Centre "at once" if it was ready to complete it in the stipulated time.
"If everyone agrees and if it can complete the project within the stipulated time, I am ready to hand it over to the Centre at once. My only intention is that it should do good to the state as Polavaram is our lifeline. The state will prosper if Polavaram is completed," the chief minister said.

Naidu said the works related to the project did not take off for several years before he took charge.
"For years, the project works did not progress at the desired pace but once I took over as Chief Minister in June 2014, I streamlined everything and things are now moving ahead," he said.
A sum of Rs 12,000 crore was so far spent on the project while another Rs 42,000 crore is required to complete it, the CM said.
Polavaram has been declared as a 'national project' under the AP Reorganisation Act-2014 but its execution responsibility was entrusted to the state government citing a NITI Aayog recommendation for its expeditious completion.

For over three months now, the state government has been trying to replace the main contractor Transtroy India, saying it was unable to execute the works as desired.
The Centre, however, made it clear that it would not permit a change of contractor as it would lead to escalation of costs besides possibly causing legal problems.
The chief minister, however, prevailed upon the Union Water Resources Minister and a "via media" solution was found under which the project spillway and spill channel works would be entrusted to a new contractor.
Accordingly, the state invited bids early this month for selecting a new contractor and hoped to complete the process by December 15.

The state's plan, however, hit a roadblock two days ago when the Union Water Resources Department Secretary wrote a letter to the Chief Secretary directing that the tender process be stalled forthwith.
This has pushed the state into a quandary, irking the CM who has a lot of political stake in Polavaram.