Chhattisgarh accords NOC for Telangana’s Sammakka Sagar Project

Chhattisgarh has granted in-principle NOC for Telangana’s Sammakka Sagar Project on the Godavari River. The project will stabilise irrigation, provide safe drinking water, and benefit multiple districts, with Telangana funding compensation, land acquisition, and resettlement

Hyderabad: Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai has granted in-principle approval for a No Objection Certificate (NOC) to Telangana for the Sammakka Sagar Project on the Godavari River. This was announced after a meeting in Raipur on Monday between Telangana’s Irrigation Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy and Deo Sai. This marks the culmination of persistent efforts by the Telangana government, initiated during the BRS regime, to secure interstate clearance for the project.

The Sammakka Sagar Barrage, located at Tupakulagudem in Mulugu district, is designed with a 6.7 TMC storage capacity to address acute water scarcity in Telangana’s drought-prone and fluoride-affected districts of Nalgonda and Warangal. The project will stabilise irrigation for 1.78 lakh hectares under the Sriramsagar Project Stage-II and create a new ayacut of 12,146 hectares, benefiting Warangal, Suryapet, Mahabubabad, Jangaon, Khammam, and Nalgonda districts. It also aims to provide safe drinking water, reducing reliance on fluoride-contaminated groundwater.

---

Uttam Kumar Reddy, who presented a detailed memorandum, assured full compensation for the submergence of 73.44 hectares in Chhattisgarh’s Bhoopalpatnam tahsil. Telangana has committed to funding land acquisition, rehabilitation, and resettlement, proposing an advance lump-sum payment to expedite the process. The State has also agreed to implement recommendations from a study by IIT Kharagpur, addressing Chhattisgarh’s concerns.

This milestone reflects Telangana’s sustained efforts, spanning successive administrations, to secure the NOC, a prerequisite for Central Water Commission approval.