VIJAYAWADA: With Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy suggesting a new route for the diversion of surplus Godavari water to Krishna basin, irrigation experts opine that using existing reservoirs, as proposed, to channel water would not only be economically feasible but also would take lesser time for commissioning the project. The new route which the CM directed the officials to explore is: water from Polavaram to Pulichintala through reverse pumping and from there to Nagarjuna Sagar and Srisailam.
Even though the State government found feasible the interlinking of Godavari and Krishna proposing reservoirs at Bollapalle and Banakacherla, which is one of the five options proposed by WAPCOS in its pre-feasibility report, the high cost involved — `60,000- ` 70,000 crore — has prompted it to explore alternative models. In the process, Jagan is learnt to have suggested the latest route and asked the officials to furnish a detailed report.
“WAPCOS had submitted a pre-feasibility study and we found one option feasible. But, we haven’t gotten the final project report yet. So, we will now study the new model in a month or two. After this, the government will take a decision,” a senior official privy to the developments explained. The officials will seek technical assistance from experts and retired engineers for preparation of the report on the same.
For the record, the proposal to use existing reservoirs, instead of building new ones, for diversion of Godavari water to Krishna basin was earlier proposed by farmer and irrigation expert Yerneni Nagendranath in January, 2017. He suggested that the existing right main canal of Polavaram project be widened to increase its carrying capacity to 2-3 TMC a day so that it could reach Prakasam Barrage. From there, it can be diverted to Pulichintala project via Vykuntapuram Barrage, he suggested.
“We already have turbines at Pulichintala which could be used for reverse pumping of the surplus water to Nagarjuna Sagar. And we can reverse pump once again to move it to Srisailam. This way, we will use the existing reservoirs (and those that are already in pipeline), instead of spending money on building new ones. Time will also be much lesser for commissioning this,” he suggested.
“The latest proposal will not need land acquisition and will be beneficial to both the Telugu States. If the State can pitch this as a part of Godavari-Cauvery interlinking project to the Centre, we can reduce the financial burden on the State exchequer,” Nagendranath, president of Rythanga Samakhya, noted.