HYDERABAD: The state Cabinet has approved Justice PC Ghose’s report on alleged irregularities in the construction of the Kaleshwaram project. The Cabinet also decided to table the report in the Assembly during the forthcoming monsoon session for discussion.
The Cabinet met under the leadership of Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy at the Secretariat on Monday and discussed the report. During the meeting, the three-member officials’ committee briefed the Cabinet on the crux of the report.
The officers’ committee prepared a 60-page summary of the Ghose panel’s 660-page report. In the summary, former chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao is mentioned 32 times, former irrigation minister T Harish Rao 19 times, and former finance minister Eatala Rajender five times.
Following the Cabinet meeting, the chief minister told reporters that the government would table the report in the Assembly in the coming days and give an opportunity to all parties, including KCR and Harish Rao, to present their views.
“After taking all opinions, we will take a decision on the future course of action to implement the suggestions made by the Commission,” Revanth stated, adding that the Assembly session will be held soon.
He stated that his government would follow the suggestions and recommendations but would adopt an appropriate system to do so. The government aims to function with transparency and avoid discussions of political vendetta. He stressed that this was not a government or party report but one prepared by a judicial commission.
Meanwhile, the chief minister said the National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA) found lapses in planning, design, construction, operation, and maintenance of the Kaleshwaram project during the KCR regime and recommended a detailed inquiry.
Revanth said that due to alleged cronyism, corruption, and negligence, the party had promised a judicial inquiry during the elections.
‘Ex-CM ignored expert warnings, plunging state into `84K crore debt’
Meanwhile, at a press conference at the Secretariat, Irrigation Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy presented the findings of the Commission. He held KCR responsible for bypassing rules, ignoring expert warnings, and plunging the state into high-interest debt of `84,000 crore.
“As promised during elections, the government formed an inquiry commission on March 1, 2024, headed by retired Supreme Court judge and ex-Lokpal, Justice PC Ghose. Over nearly 16 months, the Commission collected information from the former chief minister, ministers, public representatives, IAS officers, and others. The Commission also summoned KCR, Harish Rao and Eatala Rajender, served them notices, and recorded their statements. After analysing all the information and statements, on July 31, 2025, the Commission submitted its 660-page report to the government,” Revanth explained.
“We had promised the people that a judicial inquiry would be ordered into the Medigadda barrage collapse. After coming to power, we formed a Commission headed by Justice Ghose, and now that report has been submitted,” Uttam said.
“It clearly says KCR acted not as chief minister but as an administrative head, issuing direct orders that bypassed institutional processes,” He added.
Quoting from the report, he said: “The Commission held that there was rank irregularity from the stage of conceptualisation of the project till the administrative approvals on March 1, 2016. These decisions were not those of the government, but of individuals.”
Uttam said the decision to shift the barrage from Tummidihatti to Medigadda was taken solely by KCR, under the false pretext of water unavailability. “The report says the reason for abandoning Tummidihatti does not appear sincere or honest,” he added. He recalled that even the then Union minister Uma Bharti had confirmed water availability at Tummidihatti, and the Central Water Commission (CWC) had approved the hydrology of the Pranahita-Chevella project in October 2014. “But the KCR government wrote to the Centre saying there was no water, and that misrepresentation was found to be malicious by the Commission,” he said.
‘KCR’s own govt said Medigadda barrage was unviable’
Uttam revealed that an expert committee constituted by KCR’s own government in January 2015 had recommended that building a barrage at Medigadda was unviable and uneconomical. “They clearly said the barrage should be built at Vemanapally instead. That report was deliberately kept aside,” he said, adding: “The Commission observed that suppression of this report was not accidental. It was done with intent, to allow the CM and irrigation minister to go ahead with Medigadda against all expert advice.”
He continued: “The Commission found that administrative sanctions for the three barrages on March 1, 2016, were never placed before the
Cabinet. The Commission says clearly—such approvals, bypassing the Cabinet, are a violation of business rules. These were massive financial decisions. But contracts were issued orally, based on the CM’s instructions. Even the then irrigation minister’s approval was found legally invalid. Works worth Rs 369 crore were added without any DPR basis, which the Commission flagged as clinching evidence of malicious intent to benefit the agencies.”
As per the report, Uttam said, “KIPCL borrowed Rs 87,449 crore with state guarantees, purely through Off-Budget Borrowings. As of September 2024, Rs 29,737 crore has already been paid. The remaining principal is Rs 64,212 crore, and we owe another Rs 41,638 crore in interest. An additional Rs 1,342 crore was paid due to price escalation clauses inserted after tenders. Another Rs 612 crore was paid as inflated or unjustified contractor benefits.”
Quoting directly from the report, Uttam said: “The Kaleshwaram project, intended as a lifeline of the State of Telangana, became a colossal waste of public money due to a profound failure of governance, planning, technical oversight, and financial discipline, driven by the individual decisions and undue influence of political leadership.”
Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka said that from planning to construction and management, the then chief minister’s interventions and directions led to irregularities. He said the decision to take up the three barrages from the conceptual stage of the Kaleshwaram project was solely KCR’s.
He explained: “The Commission has clearly stated that the decision to construct the Medigadda, Sundilla, and Annaram barrages was the exclusive decision of the then chief minister and irrigation minister, and not any formal decision of the government. The claim by then finance minister that the sub-committee’s decision was approved by the Cabinet is incorrect. The Cabinet did not give its approval, and the Commission clarified that he reported inaccurately. The then finance minister demonstrated neither commitment nor a comprehensive approach to safeguarding financial health. The Commission stated that it was incorrect for him to claim he was unaware of crucial financial decisions.”
He said the Justice Ghose Commission unequivocally stated that the Kaleshwaram project, intended to be the lifeline of Telangana, resulted in massive wastage of public funds due to personal decisions, unnecessary political interference, deficient planning, administration, technical oversight, and financial mismanagement.