HYDERABAD: Irrigation Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy on Friday directed officials to immediately write to the Union Ministry of Jal Shakti and the National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA), seeking clear technical guidance on the future operation of Medigadda, Annaram and Sundilla barrages under the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme (KLIS).
During a review meeting with irrigation officials, Uttam made it clear that the state government “maintained the barrages in free-flow condition” as advised by the NDSA to address safety challenges.
Written advice from any competent technical authority will be mandatory to decide whether storage and pumping operations could be safely resumed, he said.
Uttam instructed the officials to attach the relevant portions of the NDSA report, earlier technical observations and supporting documents to the communication so that the entire technical basis for the government’s decision was placed on official record.
“The correspondence with the Ministry of Jal Shakti should clearly explain why the barrages have not been used for storage or pumping and seek a formal opinion from the competent technical authorities,” he said.
The officials said that the recent statements issued by the Union Minister for Jal Shakti and the correspondence from the ministry had largely referred to the general policy that state governments take operational decisions regarding barrages, but did not specifically address the recommendations contained in the NDSA report regarding maintaining the structures in free-flow condition.
The minister instructed the officials to quote the relevant portions of the NDSA report accurately and include supporting technical material, including findings of the Central Water Commission (CWC), Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) investigations, photographs, cavity assessments beneath the raft foundation and other engineering evidence.
The minister, meanwhile, said that the state government followed every technical recommendation made by the NDSA and Ministry of Jal Shakti while conducting investigations on the barrages and their rehabilitation.
