HYDERABAD: The 158th meeting of the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) of the Ministry of Jal Shakti (MoJS) on Thursday cleared the much-awaited Integrated Sitarama lift irrigation and Sitamma Sagar multipurpose project, bringing to fruition a long-cherished dream of farmers in Telangana.
The project, set to utilise 67.05 tmcft of water, aims to irrigate 7.87 lakh acres and provide drinking water through lift irrigation using 11 pump houses with a total load of 757 MW. It will benefit Bhadradri Kothagudem, Khammam and Mahbubabad districts.
The TAC meeting was chaired by MoJS Secretary Debashree Mukherjee, with Central Water Commission (CWC) Chairman Mukesh Kumar Sinha and other senior officials in attendance. The committee deliberated on the Detailed Project Report (DPR) of the Integrated Sitarama Lift Irrigation Project (SRLIP) and Sitamma Sagar Multipurpose Project and recommended it for approval, an official said.
State irrigation officials, including Principal Secretary Rahul Bojja, Engineer-in-Chief (General) G Anil Kumar, Kothagudem SE Srinivas Reddy, Godavari Board Deputy Director S Subramayam Prasad, and Inter-State SE Salla Vijaykumar, participated in the meeting.
An official present at the meeting described the approval as a significant milestone for Telangana. As of January, 57% of the project works had been completed with an expenditure of Rs 11,320 crore. The project is expected to be completed by the Rabi season of 2026. It has a Benefit-Cost (BC) ratio of 1.57, indicating strong economic viability.
The multipurpose project is designed to enhance agricultural productivity and improve livelihoods by stabilising the ayacut under Nagarjuna Sagar Project, Wyra, Paleru and several minor irrigation schemes.
It may be recalled that the 157th TAC meeting had withheld approval, citing the need for the Central Water Commission to further study the project designs in light of the structural issues at the Medigadda barrage. This time, the CWC director vetted the project in detail, paving the way for its clearance.
The Telangana Irrigation officials coordinated closely with various CWC directorates, providing all required technical information and responding to objections raised by the Andhra Pradesh government.
Key features
Barrage length: 1,332.75 metres
Flood discharge mechanism: 67 radial gates (55 vents of 15m x 15m and 12 vents of 15m x 16m)
Storage capacity: 36.57 tmcft at a Full Reservoir Level (FRL) of 63 metres
Hydropower generation: 282.80 MW (seven units of 40 MW and one unit of 2.8 MW)
Total approved cost of the project: Rs 19,955 crore (at June 2023 price levels), which includes Rs 927 crore for the hydropower component