Centre returns Sammakka Sagar DPR, seeks more project details | Hyderabad News

Hyderabad: The Centre has returned yet another major Telangana irrigation project report, dealing a fresh setback to the state’s efforts to secure clearances for key schemes. After seeking additional details on the Palamuru-Rangareddy lift irrigation scheme (PRLIS), it has now sent back the detailed project report (DPR) of the Sammakka Sagar project, citing gaps in crucial project information.The Centre sought details on the extent of land proposed to be brought under cultivation under the Sammakka Sagar project. Official sources said the project remains a priority for the state govt and that the DPR would be resubmitted after incorporating all details sought by the Centre.The development comes months after the Union ministry of jal shakti returned the DPR of PRLIS, asking Telangana to submit a comprehensive proposal explaining how the project would achieve its intended benefits. The Centre has also clarified that no irrigation project from Telangana is currently under consideration for national project status.Following the latest communication, irrigation minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy directed officials to compile the required information on the proposed ayacut under Sammakka Sagar. He is expected to review the project with officials before the DPR is resubmitted to the Centre.Earlier known as the Tupakulagudem barrage, Sammakka Sagar is designed to divert 46.96 tmcft of Godavari waters to stabilise 4.40 lakh acres under SRSP stage-II and create a new ayacut of 30,000 acres through the Ramappa-Pakhal link canal.The state govt has been actively pursuing approvals for the project. Uttam Reddy had earlier written to the ministry of jal shakti seeking DPR clearance and also requested a no objection certificate from Chhattisgarh.Engineers from both states conducted a joint survey of the likely submergence area. Subsequently, the Chhattisgarh govt sought a more detailed assessment, including demarcation of the full reservoir level and backwater levels, to accurately determine the extent of land and villages that could be affected.The Telangana govt assured Chhattisgarh that compensation for any land impacted by submergence or backwater effects would be paid in accordance with applicable laws and procedures.The project traces its origins to 2009, when it was conceived in undivided Andhra Pradesh under the PV Narasimha Rao Kanthanapally Sujala Sravanthi Scheme. It envisaged construction of a barrage across the Godavari near Kanthanapally in the present day Mulugu region to divert water for stabilising the ayacut under SRSP stage-II.