Latest news with #PCGhose
New Indian Express
13-06-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Save Kaleshwaram scheme and act against corruption
It's indeed a complex project comprising three barrages at Medigadda, Annaram and Sundilla, 15 reservoirs, 21 pump houses and 1,531 km of gravity canals. The idea is to lift 240 thousand million cubic feet of Godavari water in all during the 120 days of flood season every year. It sounds like a boon for Telangana, which had always been deprived of adequate water for its farmers. The catch, though, is the power requirement of 9,000 MW once the project is operationalised, which translates to an estimated electricity bill of Rs 10,000 crore, or Rs 37,882 per acre. Several experts and opposition parties had objected to it, arguing that it was unviable and there were other economically feasible ways to achieve the stated objectives. But nobody had anticipated the project would run into a bigger hurdle: the structural damage to the Medigadda barrage and others caused by the floods of 2022 and 2023. Now, the question before everyone is whether KLIS has turned into a white elephant. The National Dam Safety Authority recommended that a rehabilitation design be drafted for the barrages, but also termed the damage to Medigadda Block 7 irreversible and warned against movement of structures. There were allegations of corruption, too, hanging over KLIS and the Congress government constituted a commission headed by Justice P C Ghose last year to probe alleged irregularities. It hit the headlines recently when KCR deposed before it. A parallel vigilance probe has called for action against 57 engineers. It is inevitable that politics will play out over the charges, as will court cases. But the main task of the government should be to salvage the project. This cannot be achieved without coordination with the Centre. Action must also be taken against those found guilty of corruption.
Time of India
11-06-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Everyone is equal before law irrespective of stature, Congress tells BRS working president KTR
Hyderabad: The Congress on Wednesday strongly hit back at BRS working president KT Rama Rao for questioning summons issued to his father and former chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao by the PC Ghose commission inquiring into the alleged irregularities in the Kaleshwaram irrigation project. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Revenue minister Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy said that anyone who committed a mistake warranting action as per the law must face legal consequences, irrespective of their stature. 'The previous BRS govt misused projects such as Kaleshwaram, Dharani and Mission Bhagiratha to financially strengthen the BRS party. KCR, the self-proclaimed father of Telangana, is also not above the law and will have to face action if he has committed any wrongdoing in the project,' Ponguleti alleged. Congress MP Chamala Kiran Kumar Reddy said that all those who appeared before the Ghose commission had agreed to an open court hearing, except KCR. 'Why did KCR ask for a one-on-one questioning by the Ghose commission? KTR is unable to digest that his father was required to appear before the commission. The Congress govt does not believe in vendetta politics. It is the Congress that gave statehood to Telangana, and without it, neither KCR nor KTR could have become the CM and minister, respectively. It is the previous BRS govt that plunged the state into a debt trap and inflated the Kaleshwaram project cost from Rs 35,000 crore to Rs one lakh crore,' he alleged. 'If KCR had constructed the Kaleshwaram project in China with such inferior quality, he would have faced the death sentence,' Kiran Kumar Reddy alleged. Earlier in the day, in an informal chat with reporters in New Delhi, chief minister A Revanth Reddy said the Congress never indulged in vendetta politics since it came to power in Telangana.
Time of India
09-06-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
BRS govt followed engineers' advice, Harish defends Kaleshwaram decisions before probe Ghose panel
Hyderabad: Former irrigation minister T staunchly defended the BRS govt's decisions on Kaleshwaram project, asserting they were backed by technical recommendations, cabinet approvals, and driven by ground realities, including inter-state constraints. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Deposing before the Justice (retired) PC Ghose Commission of Inquiry on Monday, Rao, who held the irrigation portfolio between 2014 and 2018, clarified that the former BRS govt had shifted the source of the Kaleshwaram project from Tummidihatti to Medigadda based on expert committee advice, water availability, and political hurdles with neighbouring Maharashtra. "The Central Water Commission itself said the proposed water availability at Tummidihatti was not feasible. Of the 160 tmcft expected, 63 tmcft had already been allocated to upstream states. The CWC even wrote to the state to reconsider the proposal," Harish Rao said during the 40-minute hearing, conducted in English and Hindi. He supported his statements with a line diagram of the project. He added that an expert committee of retired engineers had also flagged concerns over Tummidihatti's viability. "The idea was to irrigate 16 lakh acres, but even the engineering committee recommended creating artificial reservoirs instead," he said. The ex-minister also highlighted Maharashtra's strong opposition to the barrage at 152 metres elevation due to submergence and local resistance. "Despite several rounds of meetings with Maharashtra ministers and even their then CM Devendra Fadnavis, who candidly remarked that even when the Congress was in power at both state and Centre, they could not push this project through for seven years. How could we have succeeded where they failed, given the local anger," Harish Rao said. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now H e maintained that the eventual decision to shift to Medigadda and reconfigure Annaram and Sundilla barrages was guided by a Water and Power Consultancy Services (WAPCOS) survey and recommendations from both serving and retired engineers. "Even major projects like Nagarjuna Sagar, SRSP, and the recent Kanthanpally saw location changes after field surveys — so such revisions were not unprecedented," he said. On the barrage failures, Harish Rao distanced the political executive from operational decisions. "Filling up of barrages was entirely a decision of field-level engineers and the irrigation department. The govt had no role in that," he claimed. When asked about the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Corporation, Harish Rao confirmed that it was created as a special purpose vehicle to raise project loans. "The initial plan was to generate revenue through water tariffs from industries, but Covid-19 disrupted that. The state then stepped in with budgetary support, and the govt never defaulted," he said. Harish Rao also pointed out that all decisions regarding Kaleshwaram—barrage locations, project structure, and KLIC formation—had cabinet backing. "Some decisions, especially on technical grounds, were made on the advice of engineers. Govts cannot override technical feasibility," he reiterated. His deposition comes at a time when the BRS is under political fire following structural failures in the prestigious Kaleshwaram project, which was often showcased by the party as a symbol of Telangana's irrigation resurgence.
Time of India
28-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Harish meets KCR in farmhouse ahead of Ghose panel hearing on Kaleshwaram
Hyderabad: With only one week left to appear before Justice (retired) PC Ghose one-man commission probing the Kaleshwaram project including the sinking of piers of Medigadda barrage and leakage in Annaram and Sundilla barrages, former minister T Harish Rao met former chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao at the latter's Erravelli farmhouse on Wednesday. Both discussed about the deposition before the PC Ghose commission, sources said. During the meeting, KCR made suggestions for preparing notes for appearance before the commission, sources said. KCR is slated to appear before the commission on June 5, Harish Rao on June 9 and ex-finance minister (now BJP MP) Eatala Rajender on June 6. Harish Rao, in consultation with retired govt engineers who worked on Kaleshwaram project and irrigation experts, is preparing detailed notes in support of their argument, especially on shifting of Kaleshwaram project from Thummudihatti to Medigadda, designs of barrages, water availability, WAPCOS survey, consultations with Maharashtra govt for MoU etc., sources said. Sources said if the Ghose commission permits, KCR will give a presentation on each step of the Kaleshwaram project.
Hindustan Times
20-05-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Telangana ex-CM KCR summoned on June 5 over Kaleshwaram case
Justice P C Ghose Commission probing the alleged irregularities in the construction of barrages under the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project (KLIP) on Godavari river, on Tuesday summoned Bharat Rashtra Samithi president and former Telangana chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao (KCR) for questioning on June 5, people familiar with the development said. Justice Ghose, a former Supreme Court judge heading the judicial inquiry commission, directed KCR to appear on June 5 to present his version on the irregularities that allegedly took place in the construction of Kaleshwaram project. An official of the state irrigation department privy to the matter said the commission also issued notices to senior BRS legislator and former irrigation minister T Harish Rao and former finance minister and present BJP MP Etela Rajender, asking them to appear for questioning on June 6 and June 9 respectively. The official added that several senior engineers and officials deposed before the commission that key decisions related to the project were made in the presence of KCR, the then chief minister of Telangana, and were implemented under his directives. 'In the light of these statements, the commission now seeks to record the views of KCR, Harish Rao, and Rajender,' the official added. The commission is examining the design, construction, and operational aspects of major barrages built as part of the KLIP — particularly Medigadda, Annaram, and Sundilla — following reports of structural issues. The Medigadda barrage, which reportedly showed signs of sinking during October 2023 floods, prompted the Telangana government to form the inquiry commission in March 2024. The scope of the commission includes reviewing construction quality, design flaws, maintenance lapses, and accountability in financial and administrative oversight. The commission already interrogated high-ranking officials from the irrigation and finance departments, as well as representatives of the construction companies involved in the project and has to submit a report by the end of May. It has so far been granted seven extensions, with the latest one extending its tenure by a month. BRS leader and KCR's daughter Kalvakuntla Kavitha said the notices to her father for questioning were 'part of a calculated political conspiracy to tarnish his image'. Taking to X, Kavitha said: 'The notices to KCR Garu over the Kaleshwaram project are part of a calculated political conspiracy to tarnish the image of a true people's leader.' She said Kaleshwaram was built for the welfare of farmers and future generations, not for politics. 'Today, this inefficient Congress government is undoing the very progress Telangana fought for. KCR garu has devoted his life to Telangana, transforming barren lands into fields of prosperity, and is now being targeted by a visionless regime,' she posted on X. She added: 'No vindictive Govt can diminish his legacy. The truth will prevail, and history will remember who stood for the people and who tried to bring them down.'
