HYDERABAD: A day after a small portion of Medigadda Lakshmi Barrage caved in and its pillars found sagging, BJP State president G Kishan Reddy and TPCC chief A Revanth Reddy sought a detailed probe into the incident.
Addressing the media at the BJP party office in Nampally on Sunday, Kishan Reddy urged the State government to invite the experts from the Dam Safety Authority to inspect and study the safety and quality issues of the dam.
Accusing the BRS government of not letting irrigation engineers and experts to visit the project site, he also demanded a detailed inquiry to find out what led to the situation. Stating that KCR’s dream project — Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme was not designed as per the advice of experts, he said: “It is a strange project where KCR acted as the super engineer. He used this anti-gravity project to puncture holes in the State’s treasury.”
“BRS government claimed that it will provide 400 tmcft water per year to the farmers. But only 150 tmcft water has been lifted in the last three years,” he claimed. Former MP Konda Vishweshwar Reddy demanded a technical review of the Kaleshwaram project as the recurrence of these incidents are damaging various components of the project.
Meanwhile, TPCC chief Revanth Reddy and CLP leader Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka demanded that the Centre constitute a committee, comprising experts from vigilance, investigation and engineering wings, to probe the incident. They also urged the Election Commission of India (ECI) and Governor Tamilisai Soundarajan to take cognizance of police not allowing them to visit the project site.
Speaking to the media, Revanth Reddy said attributed sinking of the Medigadda barrage pillars to human error. He alleged that it is the result of KCR designing the project himself masquerading as an engineer.
He said that the Kaleshwaram project caved in two days after Rahul Gandhi made specific accusations with regard to the project.“Kaleshwaram has fallen to the plutomania of Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao’s family,” Revanth said.
Offering to provide a helicopter to ministers KT Rama Rao and T Harish Rao to inspect the Kaleshwaram project, Revanth said he would prove the project’s poor quality in the presence of media.“Why is the State government, which arranged buses to visit the Kaleshwaram project in the past, is now stopping even opposition leaders from visiting it,” he asked.