– Review with project officials regarding floodwater inflow
Nizamabad, August 01 (Gatla News): State Minister for Major Irrigation Uttam Kumar Reddy, Minister for IT and Industries D. Sridhar Babu, Minister for Mining and Labour Vivek Venkataswamy, Government Advisor P. Sudarshan Reddy, Nizamabad Rural MLA Dr. Bhupathi Reddy, Collector Bhavesh Mishra, and Police Commissioner Sai Chaitanya, along with other senior district officials, visited the Sriramsagar Project (SRSP) reservoir at Pochampad in Mendora Mandal, Nizamabad district, on Saturday. They inspected the flood inflow reaching the project from upstream areas following continuous heavy rains. They examined the water level in the reservoir and sought details from the project officials. Officials informed the ministers that the water level in SRSP had risen due to surplus water flowing down the Godavari River from upstream projects such as Gaikwad, Vishnupuri, Balegaon, Babli Barrage, and Kadem. They stated that even if the rains were to stop immediately, floodwater inflow would continue for another 48 hours. Speaking on the occasion, Minister Uttam Kumar Reddy noted that while the SRSP’s full reservoir level is 1,091.00 feet (with a capacity of 80 TMC), the current water level stands at 1,072.30 feet, holding 27.376 TMC of water. He stated that, due to rains in the catchment areas, an inflow of 85,000 cusecs was being received from upstream areas by Saturday afternoon. He mentioned that a decision regarding the volume of water to be released for the ayacut crops would be taken within two to three days, based on the project’s current water storage levels. However, he noted that water storage levels in SRSP are lower this year compared to the last three years and urged farmers in the ayacut area to take note of this fact. He pointed out that while the reservoir held 38 TMC of water at this time last year, it is currently limited to 27 TMC. He explained that although the Sriramsagar Project was originally built with a full capacity of 112 TMC, siltation has reduced its storage capacity to 80 TMC. Minister Uttam Kumar revealed that, keeping this in mind, the government would prioritize desilting the SRSP to restore its water storage capacity and would make a decision on the matter very soon. He recalled that projects such as SRSP, Srisailam, and Nagarjuna Sagar—constructed during the Congress regime—have remained intact for decades and continue to supply water to hundreds of thousands of acres. In contrast, Minister Uttam Kumar criticized the fact that the Medigadda, Sundilla, and Annaram barrages—built in 2019 during the previous government’s tenure—had collapsed by 2022. He stated that 20 TMC of water had flowed into the Yellampalli reservoir without the need for these [specific interventions]. He clarified that the government harbored no political ulterior motives regarding the Medigadda, Sundilla, and Annaram barrages. Noting that experts have indicated it is currently not feasible to store water in the upstream barrages, he affirmed the government’s commitment to restoring the Medigadda, Sundilla, and Annaram barrages following a comprehensive scientific and technical review.
The Minister mentioned that the decisions taken by their government regarding these barrages were endorsed during high-level meetings held recently in Delhi by the National Dam Safety Authority and the Central Water Commission. State Labour Minister Vivek Venkataswamy criticized the previous government for imposing an immense burden on the public through flawed decisions. He pointed out that lifting 60 TMC of water via the Medigadda pump houses had incurred electricity charges amounting to ₹3,000 crore. He questioned the rationale behind constructing the barrages if water was to be lifted using pump houses. He lashed out at those who wasted public funds through ill-conceived decisions, noting that the very same individuals are now leveling false allegations against the current government. Collector Bhavesh Mishra, CP Sai Chaitanya, Additional Collector Bhujanga Rao, SRSP Chief Engineer Sunitha Devi, and others welcomed the visiting ministers by presenting them with flowering plants. State Urdu Academy Chairman Taher Bin Hamdan, NUDA Chairman Kesha Venu, former MLC Akula Lalitha, Nizamabad Market Committee Chairman Muppa Ganga Reddy, former Chairman Nagesh Reddy, District Library Authority Chairman Anthireddy Raji Reddy, former State Cooperative Union Limited Chairman Manala Mohan Reddy, former State Seed Development Corporation Chairman Anvesh Reddy, along with other public representatives and officials, participated.
