Irrigation and Civil Supplies Minister N. Uttam Kumar Reddy refuted the claims of Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) chief and former Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao that Congress was responsible for drought conditions in some parts of Telangana.
At a press conference here, Mr. Reddy criticised KCR for shedding “crocodile tears” over crop damages due to drought and said the Government led by KCR was the only Government in the country that did not implement the crop insurance scheme against natural calamities.
“After taking farmers for a ride for 10 years, KCR now has the gumption to visit agriculture fields and demand compensation,” he said. He also recalled how KCR visited the farmers affected by unseasonal rains only once in the last 10 years just before the Assembly elections and did not provide compensation even after announcing it.
He said every word the BRS chief spoke at a press meet in Suryapet on Sunday on the power supply was fabricated and utter lies. “There is no power shortage or power cuts for any sector in any part of Telangana as being falsely allegedly by KCR. In fact, a power generator was used by him at the press meet and a technical snag in it was also a part of a conspiracy to blame the Congress. There was no power cut in the entire area at that time,” Mr. Reddy said.
The Minister denounced KCR for the complete devastation of the irrigation sector during the ten years and asked the former CM to apologise to the people for orchestrating what he deemed the largest fraud and scam in independent India’s history.
Despite KCR being embroiled in history’s biggest scam, he boasted about the Kaleshwaram project which has seen over Rs. 94,000 crore of public funds spent without yielding significant benefits, criticized Mr. Reddy. He condemned KCR’s lack of accountability, accusing him of inflating the project’s costs by thousands of crores against the Central Water Commission’s approved estimates.
He recounted the sinking of the Medigadda barrage piers on October 23, 2023, during KCR’s tenure as Chief Minister. Despite warnings from the National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA), he lamented BRS government’s lack of precautionary measures, which resulted in substantial water wastage. He criticised KCR for attempting to shift blame onto the Congress Government for incidents under his administration.
The Minister recalled a meeting convened by the then CM KCR on July 2, 2023 to assess the water levels in the Godavari and Krishna Rivers. Upon determining insufficient water levels, directives were issued to prioritise water release solely for drinking and not for irrigation. He pointed out that by the time the Congress assumed power on December 7, 2023, the rainy season had passed, and drought conditions had set in.
Mr. Reddy also presented statistics comparing the water availability in major reservoirs across the State and said there was 1229 TMC of water available in 2023. But this year, only 154 TMC was available in Jurala, compared to 895 TMC in 2022. Similarly, the water availability in Sriramsagar Project (SRSP) dropped from 590 TMC to 205 TMC this year. Citing the data, he asked how was the drought situation created by Congress.
He accused KCR of sacrificing Telangana’s interests to serve his friend and Andhra Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy. He allowed Andhra Pradesh government to divert water for the Rayalaseema Lift Irrigation Scheme and this diversion surpassed historical levels observed during undivided Andhra Pradesh, causing the united districts of Khammam, Mahabubnagar, and Nalgonda to be deprived of their rightful share of Krishna waters.
