Hyderabad: Who understands dams better, politicians or experts from the National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA)?
BRS working president K T Rama Rao claims that they gave the Congress government the best irrigation project, Kaleshwaram, but the government is not releasing water for irrigation because of their ego.
However, the government argues that the project was not as perfect as claimed. Irrigation Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy says it is Rama Rao’s ego that is making him spread false information. He claims that following BRS’s advice would have led to several villages being flooded.
On Friday, Uttam told the media that Rama Rao was spreading lies and even organized a picnic at the project site. He compared Rama Rao to Joseph Goebbels for politicizing the issue of releasing Godavari water from the Medigadda barrage. He said the government is following NDSA’s recommendations for fixing the damaged barrages at Medigadda, Annaram, and Sundialla.
The NDSA advised that the barrages should be in free flow condition to prevent further damage during heavy flows. Leakages were noticed when water levels reached 5 meters at Annaram and 9 meters at Sundilla, making it impossible to release water until these leakages are fixed.
The minister also mentioned that steps are being taken to lift heavy inflows from Yellampally and Mid Manair dam in two or three days. This water will be transferred to Ananthagiri, Kondapochamma Sagar, and Mallanna Sagar reservoirs to meet irrigation needs for the current agricultural season.
Uttam blamed former Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao for the damage to the Medigadda piers and leakages in the other barrages. He accused KCR of abandoning the Pranahita-Chevella lift scheme for the Kaleshwaram project against NDSA’s recommendations, leading to a multi-crore scam and heavy debt for the state.
The government now has to spend Rs 10,000 crore on power bills to run all the project’s pumps. Citing a CAG report, the minister said that the project has caused a financial burden of Rs 1.40 lakh crore on the state and accused the KCR government of criminally wasting money.
Uttam also reiterated that his government is committed to constructing Tummidihatti and reviving the Pranahita-Chevella lift scheme, initially planned by the Congress government in the erstwhile united Andhra Pradesh.
