Reacting to the petition filed by the Odisha government to stop the ongoing works of the Polavaram project, the Supreme Court on Friday issued notices to Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh governments to file a counter on it within four weeks.

Not only Odisha, Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh governments too are opposing the Polavaram project. Since many villages are under threat of submergence, Odisha has been opposing the project ever since it was proposed by the previous governments in united Andhra Pradesh. Till now, the Odisha government did not focus on thwarting the ongoing works of the Polavaram project since the works are going at snail’s pace. Now, the project gathered much pace after the Centre took up the burden to complete it by announcing it as national project.

Very recently, the Andhra pradesh government sent a detailed report stating that the government is intending to complete the project by March 2018. Subsequently, the Odisha government has become cautious in opposing the project. Since the Odisha government raising objection over setting up proposed railway zone in Visakhapatnam, there were several leaks given to the media that the proposed railway zone would be shifted to Vijayawada. After much hue and cry from the opposition parties, the issue has later subdued.

Recently, Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has also said during meeting in Vizag that railway zone will be set up in the port city. “It is the right of Vizagites,” he remarked. It means that the AP CM is not at all compromised in giving up the railway zone for the sake of Polavaram. Now, there is need for the AP government to exert pressure on the Centre for railway zone. Any delay in doing this will result in losing the railway zone to Vijayawada or may evaporate similar to that of special status tag.