Telangana govt approves de-silting of irrigation projects with revenue model

This model aims to maximize financial gains from sediment management activities. On Wednesday, the government issued a GO stating that the initiative would align with the National Framework for Sediment Management Guidelines by the Ministry of Jal Shakti, Government of India. The state policy for desilting operations will focus on major and medium projects that have been losing storage capacity annually due to sedimentation.

Hyderabad: The State government has given the go ahead for de-silting the irrigation projects. The government will implement the initiative evolving a revenue generation model based on the recommendations of the Cabinet Sub-Committee meeting held on August 9, 2024.

This model is expected to optimize the financial benefits from sediment management activities. The government issued a GO on Wednesday emphasizing that the initiative would be aligning with the National Framework for Sediment Management Guidelines issued by the Ministry of Jal Shakti, Government of India. The state policy for taking up the desilting operations will be covering the major and medium projects that have been losing their storage capacity year after year because of the sedimentation over the years.

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The sediment management initiative is primarily aimed at enhancing the water storage capacity of the irrigation projects besides improving water quality and ensuring sustainable water resource management. This process is also expected to increase the operational efficiency of the state’s reservoirs, contributing to better water availability for agriculture, drinking, and other purposes. The sand extracted will be used for various construction projects, supporting both public infrastructure and private sector development, said officials.

The pilot project for de-sedimentation will serve as a test case to refine the approach and seek further instructions on the matter. The Engineer-in-Chief (General), Irrigation & CAD Department, Hyderabad, has been directed to take further action accordingly. To start with, dredging operations will be taken up in Kaddem project on pilot basis, before extending the operation to other major irrigation projects where in the sedimentation resulted in deprivation of storage capacity ranging from 25 per cent to 40 per cent.