Vehicular traffic was disrupted as farmers, raising anti-government slogans, staged a sit-in on the Korutla-Vemulawada Road.
Published Jul 22, 2025 | 6:38 PM ⚊ Updated Jul 22, 2025 | 6:38 PM
The Kaleshwaram irrigation project faced challenges, including structural issues with the Medigadda Barrage (pictured), after its piers sank in October 2023, disrupting water lifting operations.
Synopsis: The BRS-supported protests focused the farmers’ frustration on the Congress-led state government’s alleged inaction. The protesters claimed that the drying up of the flood flow canal threatened their livelihoods.
Farmers in Telangana’s Jagtial district enforced a rasta roko (road blockade) on the Korutla-Vemulawada Road in Kathalapur mandal on Tuesday, 22 July, demanding the release of water from the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme (KLIS) into the flood flow canal to irrigate their crops.
The BRS-supported protests focused the farmers’ frustration on the Congress-led state government’s alleged inaction. The protesters claimed that the drying up of the flood flow canal threatened their livelihoods.
Vehicular traffic was disrupted as farmers, raising anti-government slogans, staged a sit-in on the Korutla-Vemulawada Road. They said their crops would wilt due to the lack of water.
BRS leaders joined the protesters and raised slogans like “without water, we cannot grow crops” and accused the Congress government of being a spectator as the flood flow canal dried up. Police dispersed the crowd and brought the situation under control.
KLIS, one of India’s largest irrigation projects, is designed to harness Godavari River water to irrigate vast tracts of land in Telangana, including Jagtial district.
The flood flow canal, a critical KLIS component, channels water to minor irrigation tanks and fields, supporting agriculture in regions like Kathalapur. However, the project has faced challenges, including structural issues with the Medigadda Barrage, after its piers sank in October 2023, disrupting water lifting operations.
This has contributed to water scarcity in some areas, exacerbating farmers’ difficulties in this agricultural season.
Not very long ago, similar rasta rokos were witnessed in other districts, such as Siddipet and Rajanna Sircilla, where farmers demanded water from KLIS and other sources to save their crops.
The BRS leaders who came in support of farmers accused the Congress government of mismanaging the Kaleshwaram project and neglecting the needs of the farmers.
