Uttam Vows to Use All Godavari Allocated Water

 Karimnagar: Irrigation minister N. Uttam Kumar Reddy announced that the state government will undertake projects to fully utilise the 986 TMC ft of water allocated to Telangana from the Godavari River. He, along with Ministers Tummala Nageshwara Rao, Duddilla Sridhar Babu, Ponnam Prabhakar, and Adluri Laxman Kumar, inaugurated the Ramagundam lift irrigation project at Goliwada village in Antargam mandal, Peddapalli district, on Sunday.

At the public meeting, Uttam Kumar Reddy said the Ramagundam project was developed at a cost of Rs 75 crore and is designed to irrigate over 13,000 acres, benefitting villages including Antargam and Murmuru. He credited its completion to the dedication of local elected representatives.

The minister criticised the Andhra Pradesh government’s plan to construct the Banakacharla project on the Godavari River, arguing that it violates the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act. He noted that the Telangana government has filed complaints with the Godavari River Management Board (GRMB) and the Central Water Commission (CWC) at every stage of the project.

Uttam Kumar Reddy also condemned the previous BRS government for spending heavily on the Kaleshwaram project while failing to supply water to agricultural lands in the Manthani and Peddapalli areas of Karimnagar district. “Had the Tummidihatti project been completed at its projected cost of Rs 38,000 crore, there would be no drought in the Godavari basin today,” he said, calling Kaleshwaram “a significant irrigation scam” by the former administration. He announced that the Congress government would soon release all details from the Justice Ghosh report.

He pointed out that despite three barrages from the Kaleshwaram project remaining unused, Telangana achieved a record paddy production of 2.81 crore metric tonnes last year. He further declared that new barrages will be built at Tummidihatti and Ichampalli to ensure reliable water supply for the Manthani, Ramagundam, and Peddapalli regions.

IT minister D. Sridhar Babu announced approval of Rs 1.10 crore to prepare the Detailed Project Report (DPR) for the Pattipaka Reservoir, with construction expected to begin soon. He explained that the proposed reservoir will irrigate 2.4 lakh acres and create an additional 10,000 acres of irrigation. He also said the government is planning a special industrial ward in Ramagundam to attract private industries and will regularise Singareni lands to facilitate housing for residents.