HYDERABAD: Irrigation Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy on Sunday hit back at BRS working president KT Rama Rao, rejecting the latter’s claim that the Kaleshwaram pumps could be switched on immediately. Citing directives of the National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA), the minister said operating the three barrages before scientific rehabilitation would endanger lives, including those in Bhadrachalam.
Addressing reporters, Uttam said the Medigadda (Lakshmi), Annaram and Sundilla barrages would remain in free-flow condition until rehabilitation works are completed, with the government targeting July-August 2027 for completion.
Calling the BRS campaign politically motivated, Uttam added: “This is not politics. This is engineering and public safety.”
He accused the BRS of misleading farmers and the public by portraying a complex engineering issue as a simple operational decision. “The pumps cannot be operated as the NDSA has prohibited operation of the three barrages until scientific rehabilitation is completed and their safety is certified,” Uttam said.
He said the barrages could be operated only after comprehensive testing, rehabilitation and mandatory clearances from the NDSA and the Central Water Commission (CWC). “Our responsibility is to protect lives, safeguard public investment and restore the project scientifically. Safety is non-negotiable,” he said.
Had BRS built it right, Kaleshwaram wouldn’t be in this mess, says Uttam
Uttam warned that impounding water before the rehabilitation is completed could have catastrophic consequences, posing a serious risk to downstream habitations, including Bhadrachalam.
The minister said extensive scientific investigations were under way to finalise the rehabilitation design. He blamed the previous BRS government for the present situation, alleging that the Kaleshwaram project was executed without adhering to sound engineering principles. “Had they constructed these barrages properly, the situation today would have been entirely different,” he said.
Uttam also claimed that had the Congress government’s original Pranahita-Chevella project been implemented, north Telangana would have received nearly 80 tmcft of dependable gravity-fed water, substantially cushioning the region even during weak monsoons and possible El Nino conditions. He alleged that the BRS government altered the project’s design for “political and commercial considerations”, resulting in serious technical defects.
Quoting the NDSA report, Uttam said the foundations of the Medigadda, Annaram and Sundilla barrages remain under serious technical suspicion. The report, he said, pointed to compromised secant pile cut-off walls, seepage and piping beneath foundations, poor energy dissipation structures, lack of water-tightness, construction defects and quality-control failures.
Diaphragm walls likely
The minister said rehabilitation studies are being carried out by the Central Water and Power Research Station (CWPRS), Pune, global consultant Afry and IIT Bombay under the supervision of the NDSA and the CWC.
Preliminary findings indicate that continuous diaphragm walls across all three barrages, along with major strengthening of stilling basins, may be required. Testing is nearing completion and design finalisation will continue during the current monsoon, after which construction will begin once floodwaters recede.
As a long-term alternative, the government is pursuing a plan to bring nearly 80 tmcft of water from Tummidihatti through gravity, the minister added.
