HYDERABAD: BRS MLA and former minister Kadiyam Srihari on Friday said that Irrigation Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy and his ministerial colleagues proved that the claims of Congress on money spent on the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme (KLIS) were false by revealing the facts.
Speaking to reporters here, he said, “The Congress leaders alleged Rs 1 lakh crore corruption in Kaleshwaram project. But in their PowerPoint presentation, the ministers today said that only Rs 93,000 crore was spent on the project till date.”
“The Congress also alleged in the past that not even a single acre was brought under cultivation under Kaleshwaram. But today the ministers admitted that around 90,000 acres of new ayacut was created under this project,” they added.
Referring to Uttam’s announcement that the Congress government would take up the construction of a barrage at Tummadihatti, he recalled that the Maharashtra government had opposed the construction of the barrage.
“The Central Water Commission too wrote a letter, stating that water was not available at Tummadihatti. Despite the Maharashtra government’s opposition, the then CM YS Rajasekhara Reddy laid foundation for the construction of the barrage,” he said
“Taking all these factors into consideration, the BRS government signed an MoU with the Maharashtra government and constructed the project at Kaleshwaram,” Srihari explained and added that the project cost was increased due to the construction of storage reservoirs with a capacity of 140 tmcft.
‘Sinking of Medigadda piers was unfortunate’
Srihari, however, termed the sinking of the piers of Medigadda as an “unfortunate” incident. He alleged that the statements of ministers were like judgments made to “influence the judicial probe”.
He also said that “if a judicial probe is ordered into the Medigadda incident, all the facts would be known to the public”. Srihari demanded that Congress implement the 412 assurances it included in its election manifesto instead of “enacting dramas” in the name of white papers.