Hyderabad: Conflicting instructions from the Telangana government and the irrigation department over who should conduct safety tests at Kaleshwaram barrages have left project engineers stalled and uncertain, despite recent fund release.
Two weeks ago, the state released ₹7 crore for Medigadda, ₹6.44 crore for Annaram, and ₹6.42 crore for Sundilla barrages in line with the National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA)’s final recommendations. The funds were intended to be routed to designated testing agencies for safety assessments.
However, a letter from the Engineer-in-Chief (ENC), Irrigation, directed that these tests should instead be conducted and financed by the original construction agencies, in line with contract terms. The directive, sent to the chief engineer overseeing the project and further circulated to executive engineers of the three barrages, contradicted the government’s financial release.
Following this, implementation has ground to a halt. One executive engineer reportedly returned the funds to the state government. Two others are undecided on whether to proceed with spending or await further clarification.
The confusion stems from a June 19 letter by then ENC (General) Anil Kumar, who argued that delegating tests to third-party agencies violated contract provisions. According to him, the burden for safety verification and structural rehabilitation lies solely with the construction firms. He also gave the reference of an order dated September 4, 2023 which cancelled the completion certificate issued to the Medigadda contractor. This was communicated on September 24 to the Ramagundam chief engineer.
The letter concluded that, with certification revoked, the structures remain under construction and testing, as well as testing, must be undertaken by the original builders. This position was relayed down to the Superintending Engineer responsible for the barrages, with instructions to act accordingly.
Engineers now face a procedural logjam: whether to utilise released funds and commission research bodies like CWPRS for the testing, or to enforce contractor obligations as per ENC’s memo. The ambiguity has left all three barrage test programs in limbo.
