Govt dumps KLIS irrigation facility for this Rabi season

Hyderabad: The Telangana government dumped the Kaleshwaram lift project on the Godavari River again from the list of the irrigation projects that provide irrigation facilities in the ensuing Rabi Season. The State Irrigation Department has removed Kaleshwaram from creating the new ayacut or even stabilising the existing ayacut following a big rift between the Congress government and the opposition BRS on the viability of the multi-crore project.

Soon after coming to power in December last year, the Congress government ordered a judicial commission to probe into the alleged corruption in the construction of Kaleshwaram and the damage of Medigadda, Sundill, and Annaram barrage under the lift scheme. The probe was in progress.

Though the Kaleshwaram lift project was full of water, officials said that the government was not interested in utilising the available water from Godavari for irrigation needs in the last Kharif season. As there was no impact on the stoppage of the utilisation of Kaleshwaram water for irrigation needs in the just-concluded Kharif, the irrigation wing continued the same strategy for irrigation water supply in the Rabi season.

Officials claimed that the harvest output was more than earlier in Kharif even after Kaleshwaram water was not utilised for irrigation purposes, and hence the same action plan was finalised to provide irrigation to 42 lakh acres in the new farming season.

As per the action plan, the Nagarjuna Sagar project would provide irrigation facilities to 6.37 lakh acres, Kalwakurthi to 2.80 lakh acres, SRSP to 4.69 lakh acres, Devadula to 1.73 lakh acres, Mid Manair to 53,000 acres, Ali Sagar to 47,000 acres, the Kaddem project to 34,000 acres, Jurala to 34,000 acres, Gutpa to 32,698 acres, and Musi to 30,000 acres, and Nettempadu would provide irrigation facilities to 24,800 acres in the ensuing farming season.

The major projects would provide water to 30.58 lakh acres, and the medium project will supply 2.68 lakh acres. Small irrigation and lift schemes would provide 7.23 lakh acres and 1.60 lakh acres, respectively. The irrigation officials said that water is being released for irrigation needs in the second week of December.