Nellore: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Thursday said that the power production in the State will increase by 19 Million units per day. He inaugurated the third unit of Sri Damodaram Sanjeevaiah Thermal Power Station at Nellaturu village in Muthukur mandal, Nellore district and dedicated it to the nation.

After launch of the 800 megawatt power station, in his address he said that currently, 45% of the energy demand in the State is being met by Andhra Pradesh Power Generation Corporation (APGENCO). Expressing his happiness, this is yet another step in the direction of the State achieving self-sufficiency in power production, he added.

Jagan recalled that it was his father and former chief minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy who laid the stone for the thermal power station in 2008 and named it after AP’s first Dalit Chief Minister Damodaram Sanjeevaiah. It is the first supercritical thermal power station, and I feel proud and blessed to inaugurate the third unit, Jagan said.

The government is taking every measure to provide uninterrupted power supply to domestic, commercial and industrial consumers, besides providing nine-hour power during the day for agriculture connections, Jagan explained. Our Government took up the construction of the third unit at a cost of Rs 3,200 crore on a war-footing and completed the same in three years and four months, Jagan said.

YS Jagan also said that the super critical thermal power plant consumes less coal, resulting in less pollution. Thanking the farmers for sacrificing their lands for the thermal power station and the Krishnapatnam port, Jagan distributed compensation to the tune of Rs 35.74 crore to 16,287 farmer families.

He criticized that the farmers faced many problems in the then TDP Government’s regime. The previous Government distributed Rs 14,000 each to 3,500 farmers. Besides, paying the remaining sum, my Government is only pleased to pay the full compensation to the remaining   12,787 farmer families, taking the total number to 16,287.

326 families were already provided employment and his Government will issue orders to provide jobs to another 150 families in the second phase before November end. On the request of MLA Nallapureddy Prasanna Kumar Reddy, the Chief Minister sanctioned Rs 93 crore for the construction of a submersible check dam over the River Penna for preventing accumulation of backwaters and supplying water to four mandals in the district.

Jagan laid the foundation stone for a fishing jetty at Nelaturu village that would be constructed with a cost of Rs 25 crores to facilitate the docking of 450 fishing boats. In response to Minister for Agriculture and Cooperation Kakani Govardhana Reddy’s appeal, Jagan sanctioned Rs 21.40 crore for developmental works at Sarvepalli constituency.