Telangana: Sitarama Project tenders spark major controversy

The dispute, which saw both senior officials engaging in a fierce argument, prompted the issuance of show-cause notices to the ENC General and the Project Chief Engineer

Hyderabad: Tenders called without administrative approvals for the implementation of the distributary system works costing over Rs.1000 crore on the Sitarama Lift Irrigation Project have snowballed into a major controversy.

It sparked a heated exchange between the Engineer-in-Chief (ENC) General and the Project Chief Engineer in the presence of Irrigation Minister N. Uttam Kumar Reddy during a recent review meeting on the project’s implementation.

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The dispute, which saw both senior officials engaging in a fierce argument, prompted the issuance of show-cause notices to the ENC General and the Project Chief Engineer.

The review meeting was attended by Agriculture Minister Thummala Nageshwar Rao and senior engineers of the Irrigation Department as well.

All the three Ministers from Khammam district, including Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka and Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy, apart from Nageshwar Rao, have been pressing for the speedy completion of the project’s distributary network and the project.

Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy also held a separate meeting with district ministers and department officials, assuring financial support for the project’s completion last month.

The Project Chief Engineer, Srinivas Reddy, defended his decision to call for tenders, citing a previous meeting with ministers and senior officials, including Irrigation Advisor Adityanath Das, as the basis for his actions.

However, Engineer-in-Chief General Anil Kumar strongly opposed the Chief Engineer’s decision to proceed without his approval. Srinivas Reddy explained that the tenders were a revised version of a component of the earlier Rs.13,057 crore tenders called for the project. Revanth Reddy had insisted on completing the project works by August 15.

Taking the matter seriously, the Irrigation Minister directed Irrigation Secretary Rahul Bojja to issue show-cause notices to the officials involved in the dispute.

The Chief Engineer concerned has reportedly given his explanation. The Irrigation Minister is said to have faulted the stand of both the engineers in the issue. Fresh tenders are likely to be called for, according to the officials.