Eight more packages of SLIP works up for grabs; All eyes on tender process now

Tenders for works under packages 1, 2, 7, and 8, costing Rs 2,000 crore, will be notified within a day or two, according to officials

Hyderabad: The Sitarama Lift Irrigation Project, a major initiative aimed at extending irrigation support with Godavari water to upland areas in Khammam, Bhadradri Kothagudem and Mahabubabad districts, has reached a critical juncture. While the head works of the project, completed during the BRS regime at a cost of Rs 7,500 crore, have been successfully executed, the focus now shifts to the distributary network.

Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy recently reviewed the progress of the project and signalled the go ahead for rest of the works by assuring fund support. Approvals for the works on the distributary network are in process. They are going to be implemented in eight packages.

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As a follow up exercise, the district ministers and the minister for irrigation conducted a further review on September 27. The total cost for the distributary network is estimated at Rs 4,179 crore, including Rs 1,400 crore for land acquisition. The Chief Minister has assured priority funding support for the project.

Tenders for works under packages 1, 2, 7, and 8, costing Rs 2,000 crore, will be notified within a day or two, according to officials. The second set of packages, 3, 4, 5, and 6, will follow very soon. The competition among influential agencies vying for the contracts is said to be very high.

The head works were executed by multiple agencies, including eight to nine prominent companies involved, some based in Mumbai. All these companies are equally qualified to execute the distributary network canals.

However, there is concern that the contracts for the eight packages might be shared among three prominent agencies close to the government. This situation raises questions about the transparency and fairness of the contract allocation process.

With influential agencies competing for the works, stakeholders are keenly watching to see who will ultimately manage to make it to the final stage.

The Sitarama Lift Irrigation Project is crucial for the region, aiming to cover a total command area of 2,72,921 hectares in its first phase. This includes a new ayacut of about 1,33,085 hectares and stabilization of approximately 1,39,836 hectares.