Kaleswaram to be Demolished?

Is the Kaleswaram project which was a prestigious project for KCR, on the brink of demolition? Is the project no longer useful? Have Rs 1 lakh crore used to construct the project gone waste? The answer to all these questions by Telangana Congress government is a big yes.

Irrigation Minister Uttam Kumar Reddy made a powerpoint presentation based on a report by National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA). Speaking on the occasion he said even after the report suggested that there were serious damages in the project, the BRS leaders are not ashamed.

They are questioning who is NDSA to give the report. Uttam Kumar Reddy blamed the BRS government for drastically escalating the construction amount to pocket huge monies as commission. Though they initially estimated Rs 80 lakh crore as budget for the project, they pushed it to Rs 1 lakh crore. They created corporations in various names to take loans for the project. They took short-term loans for high interest rates. The project was built during KCR’s term. In 9 years, the project was built and it collapsed too, said Uttam Kumar Reddy.

NDSA is the body to look into barrages and was constituted by the Central government. When it was formed, BRS supported it. NDSA is looking at the safety of 700 barrages. The Board has international-level members, he said.

Building the project at Medigadda instead of Tummadihatti on Godavari was the biggest mistake, NDSA said in its report, shared the Minister. Though the engineers pointed out the flaws in the first one year, the BRS government did not bother to heed their advice, Reddy said.

Changes were made even after the DPR was submitted due to the greed of BRS government. Due to this, the project has become useless, said Uttam Kumar Reddy.

The commission looking into the discrepancies of the project is investigating the matter, the Minister said. Already ENC Hariram has been taken into remand. Rs 200 crore were found at his house, shared Uttam Kumar Reddy.