Naveen S Garewal
Tribune News Service
Hyderabad, June 21
The Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project (KLIP) worth Rs80,500 crore, touted as the world's largest multistage multipurpose scheme, was inaugurated by Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao today.
The project will start pumping water from next month and meet the irrigation, industrial and drinking needs of 70 per cent of districts in the state.
Besides Governor ESL Narasimhan, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy were present at the occasion. Both Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh would benefit from the project as the Godavari originates in Maharashtra, flows through Telangana before merging with the sea in Andhra Pradesh.
Built on the Godavari, the project is estimated to provide irrigation facility to 45 lakh acres of crop.
The state government announced that "water from the Godavari at Medigadda, about 100 metre above sea level, is lifted at six stages and supplied to Kondapochamma Sagar, which is at 618 metre height”. This means Godavari water will be lifted over half a kilometre against gravity.
KCR’s dream project materialised after Telangana and Maharashtra entered into an agreement over water sharing in March 2016. The construction of barrages and pump houses was completed within three years. Three barrages, 19 reservoirs, 20 lifts have been constructed for the storage capacity of 141 TMC. The project would also help in supplying drinking water to one crore population in Greater Hyderabad on a daily basis.
KCR and his wife participated in 'Jala Sankalpa Mahotsava Yagam' at the Medigadda barrage earlier.
The project would involve canals running through 832 km in the first route and again another 1,531 km, passing through 203 km of tunnels. Around 4,993-MW electricity would be required to fill up the 19 reservoirs with a capacity of 141 TMCs from where water will flow into the canals. The Opposition has accused the Telangana Rashtrya Samithi of spending about Rs1 lakh crore on the project while in the united Andhra Pradesh the project cost was Rs38,000 crore.
from The Tribune http://bit.ly/2N49b4b
via Today’s News Headlines
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