Blacklist Threat Lobbed Back at Irrigation Dept

Hyderabad: Warnings and threats from the irrigation department to the three agencies which built the Kaleshwaram scheme’s three now-damaged barrages to toe the government’s line and take up the required repairs at their cost, appears to have not had the results that the government expected, at least in the immediate term.

The irrigation department in its letters dated November 3, listed out a slew of steps it wanted the three companies — Navayuga Engineering Company Ltd that built the Sundilla barrage, Afcons-Vijetha PES-JV which built the Annaram barrage, and L&T PES-JV which built the Medigadda barrage — to comply with the requirements for various tests, make arrangements for conducting them, and then take up repairs at their cost.

Failing this, the department had warned the three firms that it would not only blacklist them in Telangana, but take steps to have them blacklisted in the rest of the country.

Sources in the department said that so far, only L&T had responded to its ‘final notices’ and it expected to hear from the other two companies soon.

Following the demand that the companies respond within a week from the time they received its letters, it is learnt that L&T PES-JV, in its response dated November 11, said it was “cooperating with and persistently volunteering our support to I&CAD (irrigation and command area development department) in their restorative endeavours of the barrage from the outset.”

Making it clear that the company would “in the larger public interest… continue extending required support to I&CAD,” on this matter, L&T said the allegations in the letter it received were “unwarranted” that it will respond to them subsequently.

The agency said the works being asked of it would require several steps to be completed which need to be done by the department. These include tests to be done at the barrage site by the Central Water and Power Research Station (CWPRS) for which depletion of water in Godavari river was a must, and this in turn requires construction of a cofferdam, which in turn required drawings for its layout, and design.

Only once the coffer dam was in place could any work including testing be taken up, L&T indicated. It also said investigations will need to be done based on designs to be provided by the rehabilitation designer to be picked by the irrigation department as per guidelines of the National Dam Safety Authority, and sought a list of activities required from the contractor to facilitate the rehabilitation designer and CWPRS together.

On the department’s demand for mobilisation of resources to start the work, L&T asked the department to provide a time-schedule, technical specifications, drawings, etc., to plan such a mobilisation.

“As you are aware, these are basic requirements for any further steps to be taken,” L&T said.

Saying that these were priority issues, the company said it hoped “to mutually agree with you on the terms” for the work that needs to be done, and the issues it took to the department notice previously too on this front.

It is learnt that Afcons and Navayuga are likely to adopt a similar approach, and could even seek release of pending bills, bank guarantees, and ask the department to approach all future works as fresh works.