Palamuru-Rangareddy pumps switched on amid BRS pressure

The Telangana government switched on two pumps at the Naralapur pump house of the Palamuru-Rangareddy project amid sustained BRS pressure. The pumps can lift 0.5 TMCft daily, with the stored water intended to meet drinking water needs amid drought concerns.

Mahabubnagar: The Congress government on Wednesday switched on two pumps at the Naralapur pump house of the Palamuru-Rangareddy Lift Irrigation Scheme amid sustained pressure from the BRS. Despite repeated protests by the opposition party, the government had maintained that adequate water was unavailable. It eventually switched on the pumps amid concerns over drought and the need to protect standing crops.

Tourism Minister Jupally Krishna Rao formally launched the two pumps in Nagarkurnool district after offering special prayers. The pumps will lift water from the Srisailam reservoir into the Naralapur reservoir. The government plans to use the stored water to meet drinking water requirements amid falling water levels and concerns over El Niño-induced dry conditions.

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The two pumps together can lift around 0.5 TMCft of water a day. The water can subsequently be transferred to the Ellur reservoir through the Kalwakurthy Lift Irrigation Scheme and used to supply drinking water through Mission Bhagiratha.

The previous BRS government had completed the wet run of two of the four pumps. The party had been demanding for months that the remaining pumps be commissioned and the Naralapur reservoir linked to the Kalwakurthy scheme. Former Agriculture Minister S Niranjan Reddy and former MLA Beeram Harshavardhan Reddy had warned that the party would lay siege to the project if the government failed to act.

On Tuesday, the two leaders visited Naralapur and questioned whether the government would switch on the pumps or force farmers to do it themselves. The BRS had also threatened to join farmers in a protest, with party working president KT Rama Rao expected to participate.

On Wednesday, Niranjan Reddy demanded that the pumps remain operational until the Naralapur reservoir reaches its full storage capacity of 6.5 TMCft.

The project, designed to irrigate drought-prone areas of southern Telangana, has made substantial progress under the previous BRS government, though some works remain pending. Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy had directed officials in June to expedite the remaining works and ensure water reaches Karivena by December.