Hyderabad, Aug 5 (IANS) Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy on Wednesday urged Union Jal Shakti Minister C.R. Patil to persuade Maharashtra to agree to the construction of the Tummidihatti barrage on the Pranahita River with a height of 150–152 metres.
The Chief Minister, along with Irrigation Minister Uttam Kumar Reddy, met Patil in New Delhi. They informed the Union Minister that Maharashtra had previously agreed to a construction height of 148 metres.
Revanth Reddy requested Patil to persuade Maharashtra to agree to a barrage height of 150–152 metres, noting that a height of 148 metres would not allow for sufficient water supply via gravity. He explained that increasing the barrage’s height would not cause significant submergence in Maharashtra.
The Chief Minister referred to his letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking approvals, as well as subsequent communication from the Prime Minister’s Office forwarding the matter to the Ministry of Jal Shakti.
He explained that the Central Water and Power Research Station (CWPRS) in Pune had conducted a study regarding the construction of a barrage at Tummidihatti with a height ranging from 148 to 152 metres. The study revealed no significant difference in the extent of submergence whether the barrage was built at 148 metres or 152 metres. According to the study, 50 per cent of the submerged area would lie within the riverbed itself.
Revanth Reddy said constructing the barrage at a height of 150–152 metres would enable gravity-fed water supply, eliminating the burden of electricity consumption. He urged the Union Minister to convince Maharashtra to agree to the project on this basis.
He requested Patil to arrange a meeting between Telangana and Maharashtra regarding the issue as soon as possible. He explained that completion of the project would provide irrigation facilities to the underdeveloped erstwhile Adilabad district.
Patil stated that a meeting would first be organised under the aegis of the Central Water Commission (CWC) to initiate discussions between officials from Telangana and Maharashtra. He further assured the Chief Minister that a meeting between the irrigation ministers of both states would be arranged subsequently.
Earlier, Revanth Reddy met Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav and urged him to immediately grant environmental clearances for the Palamuru-Rangareddy, Gauravelli, Seethamma Sagar and Dindi projects.
Revanth Reddy and Uttam Kumar Reddy requested the Union Minister to grant the clearances promptly in light of the recent Supreme Court verdict. They informed him that the state government has already spent Rs 36,437 crore on the Palamuru project, Rs 3,187 crore on the Dindi Lift Irrigation scheme, Rs 1,835 crore on Seethamma Sagar and Rs 1,350 crore on the Gauravelli project.
The Chief Minister explained that work has stalled due to the lack of clearances, resulting in escalating project costs. In light of the favourable Supreme Court verdict, he requested Bhupender Yadav to grant clearances for the projects immediately.
MPs Mallu Ravi, Vem Narendar Reddy, Ramasahayam Raghuram Reddy, Porika Balram Naik, Gaddam Vamsi Krishna, M. Anil Yadav and Kadiyam Kavya, along with the State Government’s Special Representative in Delhi A.P. Jitender Reddy and Irrigation Department Advisor Adityanath Das, participated in the meetings.
–IANS
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