Hyderabad: The prestigious Kaleshwaram Project across river Godavari, aimed at irrigating 728,434 hectares of land in seven districts and supplying drinking water to Hyderabad city, finally took off today with the Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao (KCR) formally performing the ground breaking ceremony in Karimnagar district.
The chief minister accompanied by wife Shoba, and several senior ministers first laid the foundation stone for the Kaleshwaram pump house at Kannepally village and for the Kaleshwaram barrage at Medigadda village in Mahadevpur mandal.
Expressing his happiness and satisfaction over the launching of the project works KCR said, “the project is a big boon for the north Telangana region. Now through the Medigadda barrage the farmers of Karimnagar district will be able to raise a second crop”.
The chief minister assured that the pump house will be ready in fifteen months and the water will be supplied through it even before the barrage was completed. He said that the project will bring a revolution of prosperity in Karimnagar as every inch of land will get irrigated and Manthani will see unprecedented development.
KCR, who also performed puja at Kaleshwaram temple announced Rs250 million (Dh13.83 million) project to develop it in to a major religious tourist destination.
Kaleshwaram project is the redesigned Pranahita-Chevella project envisioned by the earlier YS Rajasekhar Reddy government in the past. However with the intention of bringing even more areas of Telangana under irrigation KCR government got the project redesigned and named it as Kaleshwaram after the famous temple in Karimnagar district.
The project envisages drawing water from Pranahita barrage to irrigate 2.5 lakh acres of land in Adilabad district.
Kaleshwara project, with three barrages Medigadda, Annaram and Sundilla will lift 160 tmcft of water. Apart from irrigating 18 lakh acres of land, it will supply 30 tmc ft of water to Hyderabad for drinking purpose, another ten tmc ft of water for the villages en route, and 16 tmc ft for the industrial needs. The project will require 4500MW of power for lifting water at different stages.
The way for the massive project was paved only after the TRS government reached an under standing with the neighbouring state of Maharashtra to resolve the interstate disputes and minimise the submergence of villages.
However Telangana government’s plans have raised the heckles of Andhra Pradesh government which sees the project as a threat to its farmers.
The issue figured in the state cabinet meeting in Vijayawada on Monday where the government decided to write a letter to the Center against Telangana building irrigation projects without clearances. The cabinet also decided to go to Supreme Court if necessary.
AP’s leader of opposition YS Jaganmohan Reddy has also come out openly against the Telangana irrigation projects. He has decided to go on three day long hunger strike at Nellore from May 15 to protest against Telangana projects and the failure of Chandrababu Naidu government in Andhra Pradesh in safeguarding the state interest.