Harish reminds Congress govt of its duty on Medigadda barrage

Hyderabad: Senior BRS leader T Harish Rao alleged on Sunday that the Congress government has shown negligence in getting a report from the National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA) to take up repairs. He said that it will be the responsibility of the government if something happens to the Medigadda barrage.

Rao lashed out at the comments of Irrigation Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy that former chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao had spent more government funds for commissions in the construction of the Kaleswaram project. Uttam had a high-level meeting on Telangana irrigation projects with the NDSA in Delhi on Saturday.

Responding to this, Rao declined to comment on the Kaleshwaram project construction. He said, “Uttam Kumar Reddy should stop political criticism and focus on bringing Kaleshwaram back into use.”

“He has revealed a lack of understanding at the meeting in Delhi. While he says that all measures were taken, he states that soil tests were not possible at Medigadda. It is a government mistake to not complete technical tests before floods. Is it not negligence to say tests were not done because of floods? It is also a failure of the NDSA, which has not given any suggestions on safety measures,” he said.

Rao said that the government has shown negligence in bringing the report. Uttam Kumar Reddy had said that a new project would be built at Tummidihatti. The minister should disclose at what height the barrage would come up at Tummidihatti.

“If you want to build it at 152 metres, you have to convince Maharashtra first. Who were the ones who left the works without convincing Maharashtra that day? Is it not your failure? Doesn't Uttam know that even if a barrage is built at Tummidihatti, water will not go to Yellampalli by gravity without a lift?” he said.

Rao reiterated that re-engineering efforts have only improved the water storage capacity of reservoirs without compromising on pumping water from Yellampalli. He asserted that both Pranahita-Chevella and Kaleshwaram were multi-stage lift irrigation schemes with similar electricity costs.