NDSA affidavit, CWPRS report put Congress government on tight spot on Kaleshwaram project

The Congress government is facing questions over its decision to keep Kaleshwaram out of operation after NDSA said pumping decisions rest with the State. CWPRS findings on the barrages have further intensified scrutiny over when pumping can resume.

Hyderabad: The Congress government is facing uncomfortable questions over its stand on the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme (KLIS) following the Central Water and Power Research Station (CWPRS) findings and the National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA) affidavit before the Telangana High Court. The developments have shifted the focus from the damage at Medigadda barrage to a more immediate question: if pumping is a policy and operational decision of the State, why has the government not taken a call.

In its affidavit in the High Court, the NDSA clarified that decisions on pumping water through Kaleshwaram were outside its mandate and rested with the State government. The clarification is significant as the ruling Congress repeatedly cited safety concerns and the need for expert advice while explaining why the project could not be operated. Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy had also said restoration would be taken up in accordance with NDSA and technical committee recommendations.

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The CWPRS findings have added to the government’s predicament. Following its recent examination of the barrages, the authorities reportedly found no major concrete-quality defects at Annaram and Sundilla, while the principal structural concerns at Medigadda were confined to the damaged Block-7. This is making it increasingly difficult for the Congress government to sustain its argument that the entire system must remain out of use until every question relating to the project is settled.

However, the government remained silent after both developments. It has not made clear whether it plans to operate components found fit for use, wait for complete rehabilitation of all three barrages, or specify the technical conditions that must be met before pumping resumes. That silence is consequential as it concerns a decision on the utilisation of an existing irrigation system and the water available through it.

The uncertainty has consequences for farmers. With KLIS largely out of operation after the Medigadda damage, the lack of clarity over pumping has complicated irrigation planning. Farmers cannot plan their crops on the expectation of Kaleshwaram water without knowing whether and when the system will be operated.

The government has kept the project out of operation for the last two months, even as large quantities of water were released downstream during periods of high inflows. Experts have suggested that operating the pumps now, subject to safety conditions, could also help address drinking water requirements.

The issue now is whether the government will review its position in light of the latest technical inputs or continue with its existing political approach. For the Congress government, Kaleshwaram is no longer only a question of investigating the previous regime’s decisions. It is increasingly a test of its own decision-making on an irrigation system on which farmers have been waiting for clarity.