RAJANNA-SIRCILLA: Blaming the Congress government for the drying up of crops across the state, BRS working president KT Rama Rao on Sunday issued a warning to the government saying, “If water is not released from the Mid Manair Reservoir within 48 hours, I will stage a dharna in front of the chief minister’s chamber. BRS will intensify its struggle along with farmers.”
Interacting with farmers at Devunigutta tanda, the Sircilla MLA said, “KCR means Kaleshwaram while Congress means Shanishwaram.”
He also termed the drying up of crops a ‘conspiracy’ and alleged that the government was trying to link crop failure to the Medigadda incident. He also accused the administration of neglecting irrigation, which, he said, has led to an agricultural crisis in Sircilla, Thungathurthi, Suryapet and Kodad. “This is not a drought caused by nature but one brought by the Congress,” he said.
“During the BRS government’s tenure, former chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao had channelled water from the Kaleshwaram project into the Malkapet reservoir, enabling farmers in Devunigutta tanda to cultivate their lands,” he said, adding that under the Revanth Reddy-led government, the failure to repair the Medigadda barrage and ensure sustained water supply has jeopardised agricultural prospects in the region.
Recalling the efforts of the previous BRS regime to address such issues, he stated, “When KCR was chief minister, we saved farmers even in scorching summers by filling streams and ponds through Upper Manair and Mid Manair reservoirs. Now, crops are drying up across hundreds of acres in the Sircilla district.”
Criticising Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, he said, “If you are angry with KCR, confront him politically, but don’t hurt farmers. Revanth has already pushed 450 farmers to death. Congress has not fulfilled a single promise from its Farmer Declaration. It has failed to provide farmer bonds, electricity or irrigation water.”
Rama Rao further stated that 16 tmcft of water is currently available in the Mid Manair Reservoir, and releasing just 1 tmcft to Malkapet would be sufficient for cultivation in the region. “Three tmcft is enough for drinking water, leaving 13 tmcft still available,” he added.