Revanth Reddy worse than Chandrababu Naidu for Telangana farmers: Jagadish Reddy

Former Minister G Jagadish Reddy accused the Telangana government of failing to utilise Godavari floodwater for irrigation and alleged it was discouraging cultivation. He demanded operation of the Kannepalli pumps and warned of protests if farmers continued to face water and power shortages.

Hyderabad: Coming down heavily on Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy for refusing to lift Godavari river water despite heavy inflows, former Minister G Jagadish Reddy said he was proving to be worse than former Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu in the erstwhile Andhra Pradesh for Telangana farmers. He alleged that the Ministers too were colluding with Revanth Reddy to discourage cultivation and thereby avoid the burden of procuring agricultural produce.

He said farmers would face severe problems if irrigation water and power were not supplied immediately. “If crops dry up due to a lack of irrigation water and power, the BRS will not remain a silent spectator,” he warned.

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Speaking to the media at Telangana Bhavan here, Jagadish Reddy said the government had failed to procure the Yasangi crop and that its decision to offer a bonus for fine varieties had encouraged farmers to cultivate paddy. “Now they are conspiring to ensure that paddy is not cultivated at all,” he alleged. He said around 200 TMCft of water was wasted by allowing it to flow downstream, while farmers in the State struggled for irrigation water.

He demanded that the Kannepalli pumps be operated to fill reservoirs. “Kannepalli has to be switched on if water has to be supplied up to Suryapet,” he added.

The senior BRS leader criticised Irrigation Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy for repeatedly claiming to the media that the Kaleshwaram project was inoperable while stating during the Assembly session that both the Annaram and Sundilla barrages were intact. He alleged that the National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA) was being used as a pretext to avoid lifting water from Kannepalli. He also ridiculed the government’s argument that storing water at Medigadda could endanger Bhadrachalam.

Jagadish Reddy alleged that despite floodwater from Karnataka, water was not being lifted fully from Jurala. Power supply, he said, was not exceeding 12 hours in many places. He claimed that drinking water supply had also suffered and that farmers were struggling to get transformers repaired.

Recalling that the BRS government had ensured 24-hour power supply and piped drinking water for several years, he slammed the Congress government over its failure to provide either. He alleged that the 500 MW Kothagudem power unit had been shut and only two of the four units at the Yadadri Thermal Power Plant were being operated.