Hyderabad: The Telangana government renewed efforts to complete the Gouravelli irrigation project through a time-bound action plan. Irrigation Minister N. Uttam Kumar Reddy directed officials to resolve pending approvals, land acquisition and rehabilitation issues.
The project was originally initiated under the Congress government in undivided Andhra Pradesh. Uttam chaired a review meeting at the Secretariat on Saturday. He said the substantial investment already made should translate into irrigation benefits for farmers. The project has an intended ayacut of 1.06 lakh acres.
Transport and BC Welfare Minister Ponnam Prabhakar attended the meeting. Senior officials from the Irrigation and Revenue Departments also took part.
The meeting reviewed coordinated measures needed to complete the Congress-era project. Uttam asked officials to prepare a clear work schedule and speed up eligible compensation claims. He also directed them to immediately report financial, administrative and legal hurdles to the government.
Gouravelli irrigation project reservoir works reach 98%
The Gouravelli reservoir is located in Akkannapet mandal of Siddipet district. It forms part of the Indiramma Flood Flow Canal project linked to the Sriram Sagar Project. The original construction agreement was signed in May 2008. Subsequently, the reservoir capacity was increased from 1.410 TMC to 8.230 TMC.
A supplementary agreement for the expanded works was signed in December 2017. However, the expansion did not progress as planned because of pending approvals and statutory clearances.
Reservoir works were nearly 98 per cent complete. However, environmental clearance, remaining land acquisition and rehabilitation obligations still required attention. Canal and distributary works also remained pending.
Uttam said completing the reservoir alone would not deliver the intended benefits. Therefore, the canal and distributary network also had to become functional to carry water to agricultural fields.
He directed officials to use the available budget provision during the current financial year to maintain progress. Total expenditure on the Gouravelli irrigation project had reached Rs 1,343.59 crore. This included Rs 886.76 crore spent on works, including price escalation.
Another Rs 456.83 crore had been spent on land acquisition and rehabilitation. Officials said a further Rs 114.389 crore was required to complete the project. Uttam directed Revenue and Irrigation officials to accelerate the remaining land acquisition. He also ordered officials to forward the revised reservoir estimate to the Chief Secretary.
The revised estimate stood at Rs 1,457.979 crore. It was to be placed before the next Cabinet meeting. The estimate included enhanced land compensation and rehabilitation costs. It also accounted for changes in GST, other statutory charges and price escalation.
Gouravelli irrigation project awaits environmental clearance
Environmental clearance remained a key issue at the review. The reservoir expansion undertaken without prior environmental clearance during the previous regime had led to proceedings before the National Green Tribunal. The NGT restrained further construction pending fresh clearance. Consequently, works remained halted in accordance with the tribunal’s directions.
The meeting reviewed the Supreme Court judgment of July 29. It also examined the Union Environment Ministry’s September 30 office memorandum on further processing of proposals involving environmental issues.
Ponnam said Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy and Uttam were following up the matter with the Centre. Senior legal counsel was also involved in advancing the legal and environmental-clearance process.
Officials said the environmental-impact assessment and environmental-management plan had been uploaded on the PARIVESH portal. Public-hearing reports and three-season baseline data had also been uploaded.
Uttam directed officials to complete the remaining documentation for the appraisal meeting scheduled for October 8. He also asked them to coordinate with the Advocate General and project counsel. Officials were told to place the latest legal developments and updated project records before the NGT.
The tribunal hearing was scheduled for October 16. The pending proposal would be subject to appraisal and compliance with directions from the competent environmental authorities.
Gouravelli irrigation project land acquisition reviewed
Officials said 3,850 acres had been acquired against the reservoir requirement of 3,870 acres. Compensation for the remaining 20 acres had been deposited before the Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Authority in Hyderabad.
Uttam sought district-wise timelines for acquiring land required for the canal network. He also directed officials to verify and settle admissible rehabilitation claims. These included pending requests from displaced families. Officials were told to process them according to relevant records and government orders.
The meeting also reviewed maintenance and repairs to serviceable stretches of the left and right main canals. Uttam called for a practical schedule covering estimates, land acquisition and tenders for distributary works. The network was to be readied for the next irrigation season.
A revised estimate of Rs 88.89 crore for the remaining main-canal, distributary and allied works was discussed for further processing. Irrigation Secretary E. Sridhar attended the meeting. Engineer-in-Chief (General) O.V. Ramesh Babu and Engineer-in-Chief (Operation and Maintenance) Madhusudan Rao also participated.
Joint Secretary K. Srinivas was present along with Commissioner for Land Acquisition and Rehabilitation and Resettlement Shiva Kumar Nayudu. Siddipet District Collector K. Hymavathi and other senior Irrigation and Revenue officials also attended.