Gadwal, Telangana:
Telangana’s Minister for Major Irrigation, M. Uttam Kumar Reddy, has promised to complete all pending irrigation projects in the Mahbubnagar district. His goal is to make the land fertile and improve agriculture in the region. On Wednesday, he visited the Gattu Lift Irrigation Scheme, accompanied by Excise and Tourism Minister Jupally Krishna Rao. The ministers were warmly welcomed by local representatives and officials during their visit.
Minister Uttam Kumar Reddy collected detailed information about the progress of the Gattu Lift Irrigation Scheme. He shared that, as someone who has served as a six-time MLA and once as an MP, he understands the region’s needs well. He said that, during his time as a minister in unified Andhra Pradesh, he had visited these projects and now, under the leadership of the Chief Minister, he is working hard to complete them.
The minister emphasized that the government is working together to speed up the completion of ongoing projects and approve new ones. He highlighted that important projects like Palamuru-Rangareddy, Kalwakurthy, Nettempadu, Bhima, and Koilsagar are top priorities. He also mentioned plans to increase the capacity of the Relampadu reservoir, fix leakage issues, and obtain financial approvals to raise the water storage by 10 TMC.
Minister Reddy further explained that a Detailed Project Report (DPR) would be prepared for additional storage capacity. Once the Chief Minister approves it, work will begin. The minister also promised to address issues with the RDS project in Alampur and take steps to improve the Mallamma Kunta reservoir. He assured the public that all irrigation projects in the Mahbubnagar district would be finished within the next three to four years.
Excise and Tourism Minister Jupally Krishna Rao highlighted the importance of the Jurala project, which provides water to six lakh acres of land. He explained that the Jurala, Nettempadu, and Bhima projects are crucial, but the Jurala reservoir sometimes doesn’t fill up during the rainy season, causing water shortages. To solve this, Gattu Lift Irrigation and other similar projects will be completed, and the government is working to ensure water supply without relying on Karnataka.
Nagar Kurnool MP Mallu Ravi also promised that the Gattu Lift Irrigation works would be brought to the Chief Minister’s attention to ensure their early completion. He added that the government is determined to complete all projects in the Palamuru district to make the land fertile.
MLA Bandla Krishna Mohan Reddy said that the Gattu Lift Irrigation project has a capacity of 1.36 TMC, and there are plans to expand it. This expansion will benefit not only Telangana but also Karnataka. He also mentioned that engineers are working on plans to increase water storage from 15 TMC to 25 TMC using advanced technology. Additionally, the storage capacity of the Relampadu reservoir will be increased from 2 TMC to 4 TMC by next year, allowing farmers to grow a second crop.
Other important officials who attended the event included Planning Board Vice Chairman Chinna Reddy, District Collector B.M. Santosh, SP Srinivasa Rao, and various officials from the Irrigation and Finance departments.
