HYDERABAD

Deputy Floor Leader of the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) in the Assembly T. Harish Rao has demanded that the Congress Government in the State take and complete repairs to the Medigadda Barrage of Kaleshwaram Project and lift water round the year to overcome the adverse impact of El Nino conditions in 2026-27 farming year.

Speaking at a meeting in Siddipet on Saturday, he alleged that unable to carry out the repairs on Kaleshwaram barrages, the Revanth Reddy Government "unveiled the Tummidihatti drama”. He sought to know why the previous Congress Government had lifted even basketful of soil at Tummidihatti in case an agreement was reached at in the past with Maharashtra Government for construction of barrage there with 150 meter full reservoir level.

The ministers now had no basic understanding about projects and that’s why they were speaking nonsense and writing open letters to neighbouring States, provoking them. Instead of writing such letters the Congress government could make use of the agreement reached at with Maharashtra by the previous BRS Government on the Tummidihatti barrage height.

Reacting to the Congress leaders’ over-enthusiasm exhibited at Tummidihatti on Friday, he said what the necessity demands now was immediate repairs to the Kaleshwaram barrages so that water could be lifted regularly and provided for irrigation, drinking and other needs in the El Nino year ahead. Except for mudslinging on BRS the Congress ministers had no knowledge and that’s why they were claiming that agreement for 150 meters barrage height was reached at by the Congress Government in office prior to 2014.

If that was the case, why the then Chief Minister of Maharashtra Prithviraj Chavan had written to his then combined Andhra Pradesh counterpart N. Kiran Kumar Reddy that any spend on the project without the consent from them (Maharashtra) would only be a wasteful expenditure. In case the agreement for 150 meters was in place why the then Congress Government had not taken up head works at Tummidihatti and instead taken up tail-end works in Chevella area.

It was the then Congress Government that had given ₹2,300 crore to contractors as the mobilisation advance without even any survey about the Pranahita-Chevella project and lifting even a basketful of gravel. Another ₹3,780 crore was spent by the then Congress Government for land acquisition but the present government was claiming that ₹11,000 crore was spent on Pranahita-Chevella.

The flow of Godavari was only 2,000 cusecs at Tummidihatti now but at Medigadda it was 6,400 cusecs. Against the recommended 500 boreholes not even 5 were sunk (dug) so far. He stated that Kaleshwaram had helped Telangana weather the drought conditions in the past and it would play a better role now if made use of.