HYDERABAD: The Union Ministry of Forest and Environment (MoEF) accorded ToR approval for Kaleshwaram project works in Manthani Assembly segment to provide irrigation water to 40,000 acres. “The MoEF gave stage-II clearance,” Irrigation officials said on Thursday.With this clearance, the irrigation department overcame a major hurdle of executing Kaleshwaram works in 600 acres of forest land. The forest clearance for this stretch was pending for last six years.
With the Forest approval, Irrigation minister T Harish Rao directed officials to complete Mathani works of Kaleshwaram by June, 2018. Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme envisaged lifting of 4.5 tmcft of water from Godavari to fill 14 minor irrigtion tanks in Mahadevpur mandal, Jayashankar Bhoopalpally district and to benefit 18,211 hectares of command area under the tanks. Out of 4.5 tmcft water, the project also envisaged supply of 0.3 tmcft drinking water to the enroute 63 villages in four mandals. Manthani Assembly segment works of Kaleshwaram are intended to improve socio-economic conditions of the locals in drought prone areas and Naxal affected areas.
Mandals ayacut in acres
Kataram 27,809.10
Mahadevpur 10,086.31
Mahamutharam 6,203
Malharrao 1,643.13
Total 45,742.13
TS govt issued orders awarding consultancy services to EPTRI for conducting EIA, EMP studies for `2.44 crore.