Hyderabad: BRS leader and former minister Harish Rao launched a detailed PowerPoint presentation titled “River Waters, Congress Betrayals” at Telangana Bhavan on Sunday. He defended KCR’s irrigation policies and accused the Congress of sabotaging Telangana’s water interests.
Harish Rao said that under ten years of BRS rule, the state saw a golden era in irrigation. In contrast, the last two years under Congress had reversed the gains. He alleged that the Congress government entered a covert agreement on the Godavari-Banakacharla project. This continued its legacy of discrimination against Telangana.
“KCR built lifelines, Congress pushing state backward”: Harish Rao
He called KCR a modern-day Bhagiratha who transformed parched lands with visionary projects. “Today, these very projects are being wilfully neglected,” he said. Harish accused the Congress of harboring animosity toward key schemes like Kaleshwaram and Palamuru. He claimed that past betrayals during bifurcation were being repeated under the current government.
Referring to CM Revanth Reddy’s remarks in the Assembly, he said, “His words are all half-truths and outright lies, tied together like a poor patchwork.” Harish pointed out that Revanth read only selected paragraphs and ignored facts. These included KCR’s firm opposition to Pothireddypadu during meetings with the Centre and Andhra Pradesh CM Jagan Mohan Reddy.
“Seven times more ayacut under BRS than Congress”
Harish Rao claimed that BRS brought in seven times more irrigated area compared to Congress-era efforts. He dismissed claims made by Irrigation Minister Uttam Kumar Reddy as “fables” and called CM Revanth’s statements “bedtime stories.”
He revealed that KCR and retired CWC official Vidyasagar designed Palamuru as a lift project from Srisailam. They were expecting 50 TMC of water. “Revanth destroyed even that hope,” Harish charged.
He criticised the Congress for failing to release even a rupee in the last two years for Kaleshwaram’s operation. This was despite ₹200 crore being enough to irrigate five lakh acres. He also noted that BRS had raised the need for a new tribunal and telemetry systems as early as 2016.
Concluding, Harish said the Congress was sacrificing Telangana’s interests to please BJP leaders and protect neighbouring states. “They’re trading away our water rights and the future of our farmers,” he said.