Clean water reaches 38 kidney-hit habitations in Andhra's NTR district
Andhra's NTR district completes ₹49.94 crore water project for 38 CKD-affected habitations, serving 75,000 people with treated river water.
Residents of 38 habitations across 21 gram panchayats in A. Kondur mandal of Andhra Pradesh's NTR district, long afflicted by chronic kidney disease (CKD), have finally received individual tap connections under a dedicated safe drinking water project.
The initiative, sanctioned under the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) and the Amarajeevi Jaladhara scheme, was expedited after Deputy Chief Minister K. Pawan Kalyan prioritised the issue upon assuming office in June 2024. The project, costing ₹49.94 crore, involved laying 130 km of pipelines and constructing 12 overhead tanks.
Water is now drawn from the Krishna River via the Ibrahimpatnam NTPC canal, purified at an on-site treatment facility, and distributed to nearly 75,000 people at 55 litres per capita daily.
Villagers had first brought the health crisis to Mr. Kalyan's attention before the 2024 elections. He subsequently engaged the Rural Water Supply Department to fast-track execution, completing the work within two years.
The previous administration had not even initiated the tendering process, causing the original JJM funding deadline to lapse by March 2024. After the Centre extended the mission by four years, the State government promptly released its matching share, enabling swift completion of the infrastructure.