HYDERABAD: The Telangana government has made no ‘formal requests’ regarding national project status for the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme (KLIS), said Minister of State for Jal Shakti, Rattan Lal Kataria, in the Lok Sabha on Saturday.
He was replying to a question by AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi. Kataria said: “As reported by Central Water Commission, Chief Minister of Telangana vide letter dated 11-02-2016 requested that Kaleshwaram Project be accorded the status of National Project. However, no formal request in prescribed proforma has been received from the State Government of Telangana for consideration of the High Powered Steering Committee (HPSC) of Central Government.”
Kataria also said that as per reports from the State government, the total expenditure of the project, as on June 2019, was Rs 50,481 crore. “It would benefit 15 districts, and the balance cost of the project is estimated to be around Rs 30,000 crore,” he said. The Lok Sabha also informed Owaisi that IMD is planning to introduce block-level forecasts for predicting extreme weather phenomena, which till now has been restricted to district-level forecasts.
‘Consistent injustice’
While reacting to reports that every second ST and every third Dalit in the country were poor, Owaisi said that SCs, STs and Muslims have seen “consistent injustice” in India. He tweeted: “SCs, STs & Muslims have seen only consistent injustice in Independent India. Whether it’s nutrition, education or health, we’re at the bottom of the ladder. But no amount of evidence is enough for those who whine about ‘caste card’ & ‘appeasement.”