Hyderabad: Senior BRS leader T Harish Rao urged irrigation minister Uttam Kumar Reddy to immediately utilise the ongoing floodwaters in Godavari river and fill reservoirs under the Kaleshwaram project. With heavy flood flows continuing in Godavari at Yellampalli, Harish demanded that all pumps be operated round the clock to lift water and fill the reservoirs. He urged the govt not to cite El Niño conditions as an excuse and instead focus on safeguarding farmers’ interests by ensuring adequate irrigation water.In a letter on Friday, Harish alleged that the state govt was neglecting an opportunity to secure water for irrigation and drinking purposes despite abundant flows in the river. Harish stated that former chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao had developed the Kaleshwaram project network, with reservoirs having a combined storage capacity of 141 TMC, to make effective use of Godavari water. He said that while drought-like conditions prevailed in several areas, govt had failed to lift and store floodwaters from the Godavari, causing hardship to farmers.“Annapurna reservoir and Ranganayaka Sagar reservoir are currently at dead-storage levels, while Mallanna Sagar reservoir, which can store 50 TMC, currently has only 13 TMC. Similarly, Kondapochamma Sagar reservoir, with a capacity of 15 TMC, has only around 6 TMC. Filling these reservoirs will help meet Hyderabad’s drinking water needs and support future water requirements in other regions,” Harish said.He said that initiating water lifting operations from Yellampalli could help transfer water to Mid Manair, Annapurna, Ranganayaka Sagar, Mallanna Sagar, Kondapochamma Sagar, Gandhamalla, and Baswapur reservoirs. Such a move, he said, could benefit nearly five lakh acres of agricultural land.Harish also pointed out that Lower Manair Dam currently holds only about 11 TMC of water. Supplying water to the reservoir would meet irrigation and drinking water needs in Karimnagar, Warangal, and surrounding districts. He added that farmers and residents of Peddapalli, Rajanna Sircilla, Siddipet, Medak, Yadadri Bhuvanagiri, Medchal-Malkajgiri, and Hyderabad districts would benefit.
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