‘Kaleshwaram built only for earning kickbacks’

Hyderabad: Stating the Telangana govt is committed to completing Tummidihatti barrage under Pranahita-Chevella project and revive life back to North Telangana, minister G Vivek Venkata Swamy said the previous BRS govt deliberately weakened the Pranahita-Chevella project and constructed the Kaleshwaram project only to earn commissions.

The minister, along with another minister Jupally Krishna Rao visited the Tummidihatti project site in Asifabad district on Friday. Speaking to media after performing Jalaharathi in the Pranahita river, Vivek said that about ₹1,100 crore had already been spent on the Pranahita-Chevella project and a large part of the work had been completed. He said that if another ₹25,000 crore had been allocated, the project would have been completed.

He recalled that former union minister G Venkataswamy strongly felt that the project was essential to solve the drinking and irrigation water problems of North Telangana. The minister said that the then CM YS Rajasekhar Reddy recognised this need and laid the foundation stone for the Pranahita-Chevella project. During the Kiran Kumar Reddy govt, an agreement was reached to fix the height of the project at 152 metres.

“With that, only about 5,000 acres would have been submerged in Maharashtra, and it would have been enough to pay ₹5,000 crore as compensation,” he said. Vivek criticised that after the formation of Telangana, the KCR govt reduced the height of the project to 148 metres and weakened Pranahita-Chevella and alleged that the Kaleshwaram project was built only for earning commissions and that some contractors benefited hugely from it.

“The KCR govt transferred only 60 tmcft water to Yellampally at a huge cost, and electricity bills of up to ₹3,000 crore were received for it. A ₹35,000 crore project was turned into a one lakh crore rupee project,” Vivek said.

The minister said that CM Revanth Reddy is now taking steps to revive the Tummidihatti project, which will provide irrigation to 2 lakh acres, keeping in mind the interests of the people of North Telangana. He revealed that the CM will soon visit Tummidihatti and oversee the works.

Vivek appealed to all public representatives from Telangana, especially BJP leaders, to meet Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis and work to get permission for a height of 150 metres.
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