Hyderabad: Government Whip Vijaya Ramana Rao accused the BRS of misleading farmers over the Kaleshwaram project. He alleged that former Chief Minister K. Chandrashekhar Rao and BRS leader Harish Rao made false claims about the project’s benefits.
Addressing a press conference at the CLP Media Centre, Vijaya Ramana Rao alleged that the BRS projected water released from the Maneru reservoir as Kaleshwaram water. He also claimed Harish Rao frequently made misleading statements about the project.
The Government Whip alleged that BRS leaders focused on commissions and mobilisation advances during the execution of the project. He claimed they ignored its technical aspects. He also challenged the BRS to release a white paper showing how much Kaleshwaram water reached each Assembly constituency.
Vijaya Ramana Rao said the Congress government had paid ₹33,574 crore towards loans raised for the project. Meanwhile, he added that the government also paid ₹417 crore in interest. He alleged that the project failed to irrigate even one lakh acres.
Kaleshwaram project claims questioned
Vijaya Ramana Rao claimed that only 162 TMC of water had been lifted through the project during four years of BRS rule. According to him, 63 TMC flowed back into the river. As a result, net utilisation stood at only 74 TMC. He further alleged that the government spent nearly ₹9,000 crore on electricity charges to lift that water.
The Government Whip said a barrage at Tummidihatti would have reduced expenditure significantly. Further, he said the Congress government had prepared a DPR worth ₹38,000 crore. The proposed project, he claimed, would provide irrigation to 16.40 lakh acres through gravity.
Vijaya Ramana Rao alleged that the BRS abandoned the Pranahita-Chevella project after spending more than ₹11,600 crore. He also claimed that check dams built during the BRS tenure had suffered damage. In contrast, he said irrigation projects built under previous Congress governments remained intact.
Additionally, he said the Congress government would complete the Tummidihatti project. It would, he said, bring water to Yellampalli through gravity. Vijaya Ramana Rao also alleged that the BRS turned the Kaleshwaram project into an ATM for political and financial gains. According to him, the party projected Yellampalli water as Kaleshwaram water and limited irrigation benefits mainly to the Gajwel, Siddipet and Sircilla constituencies.