HYDERABAD

The Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) has alleged that the Congress Government in Telangana and the BJP Government at the Centre tried to tarnish the image of its government on the Kaleshwaram project barrages, particularly Annaram and Sundilla, but failed with the Central Water and Power Research Station (CWPRS) report.

Former minister and BRS leader G. Jagadish Reddy on Sunday claimed that the recent report of the CWPRS had made it clear that Annaram and Sundilla barrages had no major issues and even the Medigadda barrage could be brought back into use with repairs to the damaged piers by constructing a cofferdam in the upstream.

Addressing a press conference, he said the BRS had been insisting that Kannepalli pump house could be put to use without storage of water in Medigadda and the water could be pumped into Yellampally through pump houses in the upstream of Annaram and Sundilla barrages to give water to a large extent of lands in many districts in the El Nino year to mitigate its impact.

On the use of Krishna water, he alleged that the Congress Government had allowed Andhra Pradesh to divert 140 tmc ft water through Pothireddypadu and other systems to the Penna Basin, though there were drought conditions within the Krishna Basin in Telangana. All the systems of AP drawing water from Srisailam were based on flood water, but it had diverted water even before Srisailam and Nagarjunsagar became surplus

Had the State Government released water from Srisailam to Nagarjunasagar with hydel generation, for which Srisailam dam was constructed, Nagarjunasagar would have become surplus by now by getting another 110 tmc ft water from Srisailam. It would have allowed the government to give water to the Left Canal ayacut, Mr. Jagadish Reddy said.