BRS Leader Jeevan Reddy Demands Immediate Operation of Kannepalli Pumps

Addressing the media at Telangana Bhavan in Hyderabad on Monday, Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) general secretary and former Minister T Jeevan Reddy criticised Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy for neglecting state irrigation projects and failing to utilise the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme, despite completing 33 months in office.

Jeevan Reddy stated that the Chief Minister had neither completed the Tummidihatti project nor fully utilised the Kaleshwaram project. He demanded that the state government immediately operate the Kannepalli pump-house motors and direct the available water toward irrigation to support farmers across Telangana.

The former Minister stated that nearly 5 TMCft of water was flowing downstream from Kannepalli every day. He alleged that the government could have accumulated and stored nearly 100 TMCft of water in upstream reservoirs had it operated the pumps over the previous two months. He warned that the ongoing failure to store water could jeopardise standing crops in the state.

Jeevan Reddy also criticised the ruling Congress leaders for using the National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA) as an excuse for three years to avoid taking up repair work on the Medigadda barrage. He pointed out that they remained silent on a recent report from the Central Water and Power Research Station (CWPRS), which declared that the Annaram and Sundilla barrages were in good condition.

Highlighting the financial scale, Jeevan Reddy noted that the damage to piers in the seventh block of the Medigadda barrage accounted for only 0.2 per cent of the total Kaleshwaram project cost. He alleged that hundreds of crores were being spent on various events while a relatively modest expenditure could have been allocated to execute the necessary repairs at Medigadda.

Jeevan Reddy urged Irrigation Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy not to be complicit with the Chief Minister, claiming that failing to lift water was helping Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu at the cost of Telangana's farming interests.