Telangana wants Rs 12,000 crore for Mission Bhagiratha

Hyderabad: Finance minister T. Harish Rao on Tuesday requested that the 15th Finance Commission recommend to the Centre to grant Rs 12,000 crore towards maintenance of Mission Bhagiratha, the scheme to provide drinking water to all households.

The minister, accompanied by principal secretary (finance) K. Ramakrishna Rao, met 15th Finance Commission chairman Nand Kishore Singh in New Delhi on Tuesday. The delegation handed over to him a letter from Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao seeking Central funds for development works undertaken by the state government as well as financial assistance for maintenance of Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme (KLIS) and Mission Bhagiratha.

According to a press statement from the state government, the state’s representatives sought more funds for infrastructure development and enhancement of credit limit to Telangana state.

Mr Harish Rao said, “The Finance Commission chairman lauded KLIS and Mission Bhagiratha as among the best projects in the country. Since the chairman will be submitting his report soon, I requested him to allocate funds for maintenance of these two projects.”

Reminding that the Niti Ayog had recommended that the Centre grant Rs 19,000 crore for Mission Bhagiratha, the minister also sought Rs 12,000 crore for maintenance of the scheme for the next five years. He explained to the chairman that water was being pumped to a minimum height of 80 metres and maximum of 600 metres through Kaleshwaram project, costing a huge amount on maintenance of the lift irrigation system.

Mr Harish Rao further said, “The formation of Telangana state itself was based on the need to ensure fair share in river waters.” He sought Rs 5,000 crore for the speedy completion of Kalwakurthy and Nettempadu projects.

With regard to Mission Bhagiratha, he told the commission chairman that the project was in line with the central government’s proposed potable tapped water to every household in the country.