Pranahita-Chevella Barrage DPR Likely in a Month
The state government is also examining an alternative option of linking the proposed Pranahita-Chevella barrage canals with the proposed Chennur Lift Irrigation Scheme.
Adilabad: Surveys for the preparation of the Detailed Project Report (DPR) for the proposed Pranahita-Chevella barrage have been completed at Thummudihatti by the private consultancy Aarvee Associates of the irrigation department. The project is proposed across the Pranahita river in Kautala mandal of Komaram Bheem Asifabad district.
Officials said survey and investigation work has now shifted to the Sundilla area. According to sources, the DPR preparation is in its final stages and Aarvee Associates is expected to submit the report to the state government within a month.
The state government is also examining an alternative option of linking the proposed Pranahita-Chevella barrage canals with the proposed Chennur Lift Irrigation Scheme.
In 2022, the previous BRS government had proposed the Chennur Lift Irrigation Scheme with an estimated cost of Rs 1,658 crore to irrigate about 90,000 acres and supply drinking water to 103 villages in the Chennur Assembly constituency of Mancherial district. The proposal envisaged lifting 10 TMC ft of water from the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme.
During an election meeting in Kagaznagar two days ago, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis expressed readiness to extend cooperation for the proposed Pranahita-Chevella barrage. He stated that he was willing to hold discussions with the Telangana government and assured support despite the possibility of nearly two lakh acres being submerged in bordering areas of Maharashtra.
Sources said Aarvee teams are conducting surveys and investigations from Thummudihatti, the proposed barrage site, up to the Sundilla barrage as part of the DPR objectives. Under the proposal, water would flow through gravity canals from the Pranahita-Chevella barrage up to the Sundilla barrage, from where existing pipelines would be used to lift water to the Yellampalli irrigation project.
The proposed barrage is planned about 1.5 km upstream of Thummudihatti near Shivuni village in Maharashtra. Officials noted that an earlier DPR existed for a barrage height of 148 metres and that there was already an agreement with the Maharashtra government for this height.
Survey teams have assessed water levels at the proposed barrage site and identified submergence areas. Aarvee consultants and irrigation officials also inspected locations at the confluence of the Vainganga and Wardha rivers, which later form the Penganga river, and visited Asti village near the confluence area as part of the preliminary investigations.
