‘Every drop of Godavari will reach farmers’

Metro India News | wanaparthy

Minister for Irrigation and Civil Supplies N Uttam Kumar Reddy on Saturday inspected the Sriramsagar (SRSP), Kaddam and Sripada Yellampally irrigation projects after they received the first significant Godavari inflows of the season. During the visit, five pumps at Yellampally were activated to transfer water through the Flood Flow Canal towards Mid Manair, with the Minister reiterating the government's commitment to making optimum use of every drop of Godavari water for the benefit of farmers in northern Telangana.

Accompanied by Ministers D. Sridhar Babu, G. Vivek Venkatswamy, Adluri Lakshman, legislators and senior officials, Uttam Kumar Reddy reviewed inflows, reservoir storage and pumping operations. He directed officials to monitor the projects on an hourly basis and ensure coordinated water management to prevent wastage.

Clarifying misconceptions, the Minister stated that the water being pumped from Yellampally is natural Godavari flow and not water from the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme. He noted that Yellampally was conceived under the Congress government's Pranahita Chevella project and rejected attempts to describe it as Kaleshwaram water.

The Minister said the government would restore the Medigadda, Annaram and Sundilla barrages only after scientific evaluation and expert guidance. He explained that the National Dam Safety Authority and Central Water Commission have advised against storing water in the barrages until investigations and rehabilitation are completed. A Central Technical Oversight Committee is supervising the process, while IIT Bombay and AFRY India are preparing rehabilitation designs expected within the next few months.

Criticising the previous BRS government, Uttam Kumar Reddy alleged that despite massive expenditure on irrigation, several projects remained incomplete and structural defects affected the Kaleshwaram barrages. He highlighted that Telangana has achieved record paddy production and procurement without depending on the damaged barrages and assured farmers that the government would continue to maximise the utilisation of Godavari waters for irrigation, drinking water and agriculture while safeguarding the state's rightful share in river waters.