hyderabad
Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) has faulted the proceedings in the Telangana Assembly on Tuesday as the House was adjourned for the day without giving an opportunity to the Opposition after the treasury benches spoke on Kaleshwaram Project and Medigadda Barrage.
Speaking outside the Assembly, former Minister and BRS MLA T. Harish Rao said the Congress Government was trying to portray only one side of Kaleshwaram Project by making people believe that only the damaged Medigadda Barrage is part of the project. The team of legislators led by Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy should also see Ranganayakasagar, Mallannasagar, Kudellivagu and the lush green farm fields cultivated with water from them, which too are part of Kaleshwaram and get water from Medigadda.
He stated that Kaleshwaram was compilation of three barrages, 15 reservoirs, 19 sub-stations, 21 pump houses, 203 km long tunnels, 1,531 km long gravity canals, 98 km pressure mains, 141 tmc ft storage capacity, lifting water from 100 meters above mean sea level to 630 meters and utilisation capacity of 240 tmc ft.
However, the government was only showcasing the damaged Medigdda to portray the entire project as failure and hiding the fact it had played a key role in taking the paddy production in the State to three crore tonnes in a year, he said. A team of half-a-dozen ministers visited the damaged structure and a vigilance and enforcement inquiry was ordered into it. It was for the government to take appropriate action against those responsible, Mr. Harish Rao said.
At the same time, it was also the responsibility of the government to repair and restore the barrage before the commencement of the next monsoon season so that it could continue helping the growth of State’s economy. Even in the current position, water could be lifted back from Kannepally, the pump house linked to Medigadda, by taking up a coffer dam so that water could be drawn for irrigation and drinking needs without any problem.
He suggested the ruling party to ask the farming community who were getting benefited from the Kaleshwaram Project, and the team of Congress legislators from Karnataka who visited Ranganayakasagar recently and complimented the project. He alleged that it was due to mala fide intentions, the Congress Government was delaying the restoration works of Medigadda only to show the previous government in poor light.
On Pranahita-Chevell, Mr. Harish Rao sought to know why the previous Congress Government did execute the head works, barrage at Tummidihetti, from 2007 to 2014 and only taken up canals far away from the head works. He mentioned that it was the Chhapral wildlife sanctuary and lack of agreement between the then combined Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra that prevented construction of a barrage there.
Further, he alleged that the government had organised Medigadda visit only to thwart the BRS meeting at Nalgonda being held on the Krishna waters issue.
