State sounds international agencies to investigate Medigadda episode

The Irrigation officials have already sounded out three such organisations for shouldering the task. They are engaged in preliminary-level talks with their Indian counterparts. The agency to be entrusted with the responsibility will be finalised soon, they said.  

Hyderabad: The State government is firm on drafting services of international agencies that are known for services of dam safety professionals and experts in the inter-related disciplines to investigate the sinking of pillars of Medigadda barrage.

The Irrigation officials have already sounded out three such organisations for shouldering the task. They are engaged in preliminary-level talks with their Indian counterparts. The agency to be entrusted with the responsibility will be finalised soon, they said.

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As a precaution, the storage levels in all three barrages of the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme (KLIS) were being brought down to facilitate physical inspection of the structure. There is more focus on the impacted structure at Medigadda. If needed underwater inspection of the structures would be taken up with the help of an investigation agency. The state-level dam safety organisation (SDSO) is already on the task.

So far as the seepage at the Annaram dam was concerned, it was neither a serious issue nor noticed for the first time. It was noticed twice in the past and addressed by adopting grouting methods. “This time we are thinking of sand-pumping to ensure that the surface beneath the structure remains compact and stable. These are all options tried out successfully in other dams all over India”, they added.

“The Dam Safety Act, 2021 of the Central Government is basically intended to override the state dam safety organisations and the project authorities concerned. Identifying issues is done at all levels. The NDSA is not the only agency engaged in dam safety. The Dam Safety Act has made no provision for supporting the course of action with resources, said a senior irrigation official.

Not a single rupee was received from any of the national agencies for addressing the safety issues identified with the state projects. Maintenance of certain old projects right from Nizamsagar to Kaddam project would require customized spare parts. There is no scope for maintaining an inventory since the diameter of the rope used in the operation of the same project would vary from one crest gate to the other.

Barring two projects in the state, the department has been facing issues with almost all the old projects. We are ready to address challenges in a professional manner. But hue and cry over non-issues because of lack of knowledge over the issues involved in operation of dams will serve no purpose. After another 50 years, the technology used in Medigadda or any other similar project would pose similar challenges and we need to be prepared for such a day, he asserted.