Minister Directs Fast-Tracking of Gouravelli Project at Secretariat Review

Irrigation Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy directed officials to resolve pending land acquisition and rehabilitation issues through a time-bound programme to facilitate the early completion of the Gouravelli project. The instructions were issued during a review meeting held at the Secretariat in Hyderabad on Saturday, where Minister Ponnam Prabhakar, government officials, and local farmers were also present.

During the meeting, the Irrigation Minister stressed the urgent need to translate the substantial financial investment already made in the infrastructure into tangible irrigation benefits. The project is designed to serve an intended ayacut of 1.06 lakh acres once all remaining components are finished.

Located in Akkannapet mandal of Siddipet district, the Gouravelli reservoir forms part of the Indiramma flood flow canal project originating from the Sriram Sagar Project. The initial construction agreement for the scheme was signed in May 2008 during Congress rule in undivided Andhra Pradesh.

The project’s scope was later expanded, enhancing the planned reservoir capacity from 1.410 TMC to 8.230 TMC. Following that increase, a supplementary agreement for the expanded works was signed in December 2017, although the works failed to materialise at the time due to an absence of required approvals and clearances.

Reddy pointed out that the physical reservoir works are already nearly 98 percent complete. He stated that the remaining tasks must now be systematically cleared so the facility can finally operate as intended.

According to the minister, securing environmental clearance, settling the remaining land acquisition, meeting all rehabilitation obligations, and completing the canal networks are essential before the project can successfully deliver its planned irrigation water to farmers.