Hyderabad: More than two years after troubles surfaced at the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme (KLIS), the Telangana govt is preparing for one of the biggest dam rehabilitation exercises in the state, with repairs to the Medigadda, Annaram and Sundilla barrages expected to cost nearly ₹2,100 crore. The govt is also considering setting up a special corporation or dedicated agency to fund and execute the works.The move comes as the state gears up to restore the three barrages to operation. Irrigation minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy has already announced that repair works will begin in mid-Nov and are targeted for completion by mid-June 2027.According to irrigation department officials, preliminary estimates place the rehabilitation cost at around ₹2,100 crore, with the bulk of the expenditure going towards construction of new diaphragm walls at the three barrages.Officials said nearly ₹1,800 crore would be required for diaphragm wall construction alone, while another ₹300 crore is expected to be spent on associated works, including strengthening and extension of stilling basins.At Medigadda, the stilling basin is proposed to be extended up to 60 metres, while at Annaram and Sundilla it may be extended by 45-50 metres. A stilling basin is a concrete structure built at the base of a dam spillway to dissipate the force of fast-flowing water and prevent erosion of the riverbed downstream.“The estimations and rehabilitation works will be finalised at the technical oversight committee meeting that will be held in Delhi on Oct 12. The cost of the repairs will depend on the designs, and there may be slight variation in the estimations also,” a senior irrigation official said.The technical oversight committee, constituted by the Union ministry of jal shakti and headed by the technical member of the National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA), is expected to examine rehabilitation plans, designs and investigation reports before finalising the scope of works.Govt likely to bear major repair costOfficials said the state government is preparing to undertake the rehabilitation work after the agencies that constructed the barrages reportedly declined to bear the cost, arguing that their defect liability period had ended.The govt had earlier cancelled the completion certificates issued to the projects and is yet to clear around ₹800 crore in pending bills owed to the contractors.Sources said L&T, which built the Medigadda barrage, has dues of ₹460 crore, while Navayuga Engineering Company (Sundilla) and Afcons (Annaram) have pending payments of ₹170 crore each.“The govt in principle has decided to bear the cost for rehabilitation and repairs especially for the new works like construction of diaphragm walls and other works, which were not in the scope of the works earlier. The companies have been asked to bear the cost of the works that were already done and require repairs due to poor quality,” a senior irrigation official told TOI.Officials indicated that the arrangement could be acceptable to the contractors as clearance of pending bills remains linked to the ongoing discussions.Special agency plannedTo mobilise funds and oversee implementation, the govt is examining the creation of a special purpose vehicle (SPV) or a dedicated agency exclusively for the barrage rehabilitation programme.The proposal mirrors the approach adopted by the previous BRS govt, which had established the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Corporation Limited (KLICL) to execute the Kaleshwaram project. The corporation raised nearly ₹80,000 crore in loans for Kaleshwaram and another ₹10,000 crore for the Palamuru-Rangareddy Lift Irrigation Scheme.The rehabilitation exercise comes against the backdrop of the Justice PC Ghose Commission’s inquiry into alleged irregularities in the planning, design and execution of the Kaleshwaram proejct. In its report, the commission reportedly flagged serious deficiencies related to the Medigadda, Annaram and Sundilla barrages and fixed responsibility on key decision-makers involved in the project.However, in April, the Telangana high court restrained the state govt from acting on the commission’s findings, holding that the inquiry suffered from procedural lapses, while upholding the legality of the commission’s constitution. As a result, the report cannot currently be used for punitive action, though the technical exercise to repair and restore the barrages is continuing separately.With rehabilitation plans now entering the final approval stage, the Oct 12 meeting in Delhi is expected to determine the final design, scope and cost of the works required to bring the three barrages back into service, sources said.
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