Multiple Benefits of Mallannasagar : Vanam Jwala Narasimha Rao

Multiple Benefits of Mallannasagar

Vanam Jwala Narasimha Rao

Metro India (30-07-2016)

Soon after formation of Telangana State the foremost question that has been frequently asked by every farmer is on the expeditious completion of irrigation projects and on the early prospect of getting water to their fields. Immediately after the formation of the state, CM KCR reviewed the progress of irrigation projects supposed to be intended for Telangana which were deliberately designed in such a way that they are either dragged into interstate disputes or face the problem of environment permissions or the issue of passing through wildlife protection areas. Chief Minister had a series of consultations with retired chief engineers, irrigation experts and other knowledgeable persons in addition to understanding on his own every aspect of it with the help of Google maps and LIDAR surveys. In the process among other things it is also known that Maharashtra built as many as 450+ barrages across River Godavari to the disadvantage of Telangana.

The shaggy dog story of Pranahita-Chevella project is that, this project is conceived with a storage capacity of 16 TMC and would irrigate 16. 45 lakhs acres! Tambhidihatti with a capacity of 5 TMC is the place where the project would come up as per former CM YS Rajashekhar Reddy design. It was envisaged to have six stage lift and by the time it reaches Chevella to have one more lift. Technically also there are number of defects in this design. It is a known practice to have storage reservoirs in between the project site and ultimate destination of flow with 20 or 30 or 50 TMC as the case may be to ensure uninterrupted water supply to the entire Ayucut. The earlier design has not thought of this.

            In fact Professionals and specialists of WAPCOS which conducted a survey and gave report in favor of Tambhidihatti site, confirmed to KCR, that, though they preferred to have barrage near Kaleshwaram they were forced to favor Tambhidihatti by the then CM. The average availability of water at Kaleshwaram as per CWC records is 1651 TMC against the availability of 1144 TMC at Tambhidihatti an increase of over 500 TMC. The plan of YSR was that the extra water available at Kaleshwaram should flow to Dhavaleswaram if the project is built at Tambhidihatti even after formation of Telangana. Regarding Medigadda barrage, Maharashtra which is not in favor of Tambhidihatti, not only did not raise any objection but also agreed for the height of 101 meters that Telangana proposed. The storage capacity here would be almost 20TMC. Here all through the year-365 days-there is water availability.

            After constructing barrage at Medigadda and in the process of getting water through pump houses, if at all any shortage at any point of time, there is plenty of opportunity to draw water from River Indrāvati. Water from Pranahita, Kadem, Adilabad, Maner, Karimnagar and down below SRSP will be able to draw only when barrage is constructed at Medigadda. Due to this redesigning there is an increase from earlier designed 16.3 TMC to 200 TMC on the whole. After Annaram barrage, without any submerge of Godavari Ayucut lands, keeping the River live, it is planned to have a capacity of 3.62TMC at Annaram and 1.5TMC at Sundilla barrage on River Godavari. The earlier government’s plan was only to provide 0.58TMC at Medaram. This also requires to increase and as there is a possibility for it, it is proposed to take to a level of 3-4TMC. Similarly at Malkapet the increase would be to 3TMC from 0.35TMC. Earlier at Ananthagiri it was of 1TMC and now it is increased to 3.5TMC. Imamabad will have 80TMC or even more. Next it would be Mallannasagar.

Thus in the order the reservoirs that are planned are: 50TMC Mallannasagar, 21TMC Kondapochamma Project near Pamulaparthi, 14.5TMC Baswapur Project in Bhuvanagiri assembly segment, 9.84TMC Gandhamarri Project in Aler assembly segment, 2.90TMC reservoir at Mote in Yellareddy assembly segment, 1.5TMC Gujjuvana and 5TMC Katevadi Projects in the same segment and 5TMC Tallamada reservoir, 3TMC Timmakapally, 2.5TMC Kachapur reservoir, 2.5TMC Isaipet reservoir all in Kamareddy segment and 5TMC Konda tank near Manchippa in Nizamabad district. For the drinking water supply to Hyderabad city a reservoir with 20TMC is designed at Shameerpet. In the process, the capacity of Gouravelli would be brought up to 8.23TMC and that of Gandipet to 1TMC. A reservoir would also be built near Pattipaka with 5.5TMC capacity.

All these put together the redesigning of the project makes it absolutely potential for a provision of 200TMC of water enabling irrigation completely, comprehensively and effectively.

In future, from Medigadda reservoir towards Sundilla and Annaram barrages the river flows live. When the water reaches Sundilla from there till Yellampalli availability of water is assured. The already built Yellampalli reservoir where there is less water this year will be filled to its full capacity of 20TMC next year. From Yellampalli passing through Rayapatnam bridge up to Jaina near Dharmapuri the river will flow live. From here if SRSP is made live till River Godavari it would become 20 kilometers of live river. In between there is Sadharapadu barrage and couple of more barrages are built, then, from Sriramsagar to Medigadda and Indrāvati River Godavari will be in complete and full form and will have a live flow of water. Farmers of Adilabad and Karimnagar districts through an arrangement of small lifts on either side of barrages will be in a position to irrigate their fields. From Medigadda to SRSP all along the 200 kilometers stretch there will be vegetation and affluent agriculture fields all through the year and on all the 365 days. The pasture, the rivulet, the livestock, the bird etc will all be blossoming. The Kaleshwaram barrage will convert the entire northern part of Telangana a fertile land and the agriculture there will flourish with grandeur.

In the redesigning it is proposed to bring 2TMC of water from Yellampalli to MMD. The capacity of MMD and Ananthagiri reservoir and that of Imamabad requires to be increased. The Mallannasagar Project with 50TMC capacity will be of multiple benefit one because water from here reaches Aler and Bhuvanagiri. When once water from River Godavari reaches Mid Maner, an another four (4) lakh acres would be brought under irrigation in the Warangal district through MMD and LMD in addition to the six (6) lakh acres that is under irrigation through Devadula project. Even to fill Singoor or Nizamsagar water can be set in motion from Mallannasagar through gravity there without spending even a single rupee. Once water reaches Nizamsagar, from there, automatically it can flow to Sriramsagar Project. Redesigning will also bring back the past glory to Nizamsagar and the entire three (3) lakh acres Ayucut of it will be perfectly brought under assured irrigation and also will help in rejuvenating SRSP.

When CM KCR made a historical presentation on the genesis, necessity and concept of redesigning of irrigation projects which included details of Mallannasagar Reservoir in the Assembly, Congress party which is now agitating against the project, for reasons best known to it stayed out of the House. CM questioned the rationality in doing so by them. It was a factsheet on irrigation projects and CM sought the suggestions from the members. At a time when almost all the farmers in the likely submerge area consented to register their lands and in a completing stage why still provocation?

Why should the opposition attempt to stall the multiple benefit Mallannasagar just because few villages face submerge unmindful of over a million acres are irrigated? End