Government neglecting PRLIS works intentionally, alleges BRS leader Niranjan Reddy

Singireddy Niranjan Reddy. File
| Photo Credit: The Hindu

HYDERABAD

The Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) has alleged that the Congress Government is intentionally keeping the Palamuru-Rangareddy Lift Irrigation Scheme (PRLIS) works pending by keeping aside the tenders finalised during the previous BRS rule.

Former minister and party leader Singireddy Niranjan Reddy said on Friday (September 6, 2024) that there was no progress in PRLIS work during the last nine months and even the Minister for Irrigation had not reviewed it once. Stating that there was a heavy flood to the Jurala project this season and it had received 732 tmc ft of water in just 50 days. Of it, only 22 tmc ft was drawn/stored and a lion’s share of the remaining volume had gone into the sea.

The previous Congress Government had constructed Yelluru, Jonnalaboguda and Gudipalli reservoirs under the Kalwakurthy Lift Irrigation Scheme with a combined storage capacity of only 3.9 tmc ft water against the huge ayacut of 3.5 lakh acres. Larger capacity reservoirs would have helped store the water and utilise it for drinking and irrigation needs later this year.

To prevent such a scenario, the BRS Government in the past had constructed Narlapur (8.51 tmc ft), Yedula (6.55 tmc ft), Vattem (16.74 tmc ft), Karivena (15.34 tmc ft) and Uddandapur (16.03 tmc ft) with a combined storage capacity of 63.17 tmc ft water under PRLIS in a record time overcoming the hurdles created by the Congress party in the form of court cases and the conspiracies of Andhra Pradesh.

The previous government had also commissioned one pump at Narlapur before the Assembly elections and completing some pending works by the Congress Government would have helped take the flood water to Yedula and Vattem reservoirs. However, lack of interest in completing the project and lack of supervision on the completed work had led to the flooding of the Vattem pump house, he alleged and demanded that the government take up PRLIS works on war footing to draw at least some quantity of water.