PNS|Hyderabad
Irrigation and Civil Supplies Minister N. Uttam Kumar Reddy on Saturday declared that the Congress Government would fast-track the long-pending Sita Rama Lift Irrigation Project (SRLIP) and the Sitamma Sagar Multi-Purpose Project (SSMPP), as both of them are crucial for irrigating southern Telangana.
Chairing a high-level review meeting at the Jala Soudha, Uttam was joined by Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, Ministers Tummala Nageswara Rao and Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy, senior irrigation officials, and former Yellandu MLA Gummadi Narsaiah, who was invited to flag local concerns.
Addressing officials, Uttam said the projects, once completed, would provide irrigation to nearly 7.80 lakh acres in Khammam, Bhadradri Kothagudem and Mahbubabad districts.
“The BRS Government didn’t even secure water for Sita Rama,” he said, crediting the Congress Government for convincing the Centre and the Central Water Commission to allocate 67 TMCs of Godavari water within 16 months of taking office.
Engineers presented a status report on SRLIP, stating that 97% of the main canal is complete. Of the four major pump houses, three have successfully undergone wet runs, and the fourth is nearing completion. Work on link canals like Palair, Sathupalli, and Enkoor are progressing, but face challenges regarding land acquisition, forest clearances and structural works.
Pulling up officials over delays, Uttam said, “This is the working season. No excuses. Push forward at full speed.”
He directed daily physical monitoring of land and forest clearance issues and demanded a comprehensive report detailing the cost, progress, and specific bottlenecks in land acquisition.
He also asked officials to prepare justification notes for priority payments to contractors so that approvals can be expedited.
On the Sitamma Sagar Project, he said pending environmental and forest clearances were being pursued. He flagged a Rs 53.41 crore penalty imposed by the National Green Tribunal for works taken up without clearance, and said the government is preparing a legal strategy to get the penalty waived.
He confirmed the project would include a 282.8 MW hydroelectric component, for which a proposal had already been submitted to TGGENCO.
