At a review meeting of irrigation projects in Khammam district, the minister said the BRS govt squandered thousands of crores of rupees.
Review meeting to assess state of the Sita Rama Lift Irrigation Project. (X)
The Sita Rama Lift Irrigation Project in the erstwhile Khammam district has been described as the “largest recorded scam in the entire country” by Telangana Irrigation Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy.
During a thorough review of the irrigation projects in Khammam district on Friday, 19 January, the minister lamented that the previous government squandered thousands of crores of rupees under the guise of constructing the Sita Rama Lift Irrigation Project.
According to him, the project, which should have been completed by 2014 with an additional ₹1,400 crore investment, remains unexecuted despite the previous administration lavishing an extra ₹7,500 crore on it. If initiated in 2014, by now, three lakh acres of arid land in Khammam would have received water, he contended.
Reddy alleged that the former BRS government, despite its colossal spending, failed to irrigate even a single acre of farmland.
Reviewed the status of Seetharam Sagar project in Khammam along with Deputy CM @Bhatti_Mallu, Revenue Minister @mpponguleti & Agriculture Minister @Tummala_INC. @INCTelangana pic.twitter.com/Mqzg9I3XtA
— Uttam Kumar Reddy (@UttamINC) January 19, 2024
Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, a native of Khammam, asserted that the delay in implementing the Sita Rama Lift Irrigation Project undermined the very essence of Telangana’s fight for a fair share in river waters.
Previously called the Rajiv Dummugudem Lift Irrigation Scheme, initiated by the erstwhile Congress government before Telangana’s formation, it was initially estimated at ₹1,681 crore. However, it required an additional ₹1,400 crore by 2014.
“It was unfortunate that the previous government did not care about the completion of the project,” he said.
Vikramarka questioned the rationale behind renaming the project as the Sita Rama Lift Irrigation Project and inflating its estimate to ₹18,500 crore. Urging the public to support the current Congress government in rectifying the mess left by the BRS administration, he exclaimed, “The scale and size of the plunder makes me grieve no end.”
Uttam Kumar Reddy and Bhatti Vikramarka announced their plans to visit the Sita Rama Project within the next two to three days to assess its status. They emphasised that the state government would deliberate on measures to address the reckless spending of the previous government in the upcoming Cabinet meeting.
Expressing their dissatisfaction, the ministers criticised the previous BRS-led state government for not securing any additional river water in the past decade. They accused the BRS of mishandling funds and failing to adhere to proper procedures for project applications.
“The BRS government did not apply for funds from the government in a proper format for any project,” Reddy said. He added that Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat had told them that according “national project status” has been dispensed with and that he made this very clear to the BRS government as well.
Reddy and Vikramarka accused the outgoing BRS government of leaving behind a debt servicing burden of ₹18,000 crore and unpaid bills totaling ₹9,000 crore. They contended that the BRS administration pursued irrigation projects solely for financial gain, not with the intent of providing water to farmers.
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