Massive Corruption In Kaleshwaram: Uttam Kumar Reddy

Alleging that there was massive corruption in the Kaleswaram Lift Irrigation Project ( KLIP) built by the previous BRS government at a cost of Rs 1 lakh crore, Minister for Irrigation Uttam Kumar Reddy said that the State government would not spare those involved in the irregularities.

The minister expressed concern over the poor structure of the projects constructed under the KLIP, and said that the wastage of public money spent in the name of the projects without getting the desired results was a huge regret.

Reddy along with a group of other ministers including Komatireddy Venkat Reddy, Ponguleti Srinivasa Reddy, Sridhar Babu and Ponnam Prabhakar, Congress MLC Jeevan Reddy, MLA G Vivek and senior officials from the irrigation department on Friday visited the Medigadda barrage where some of the pillars sank, and gathered the first-hand information of the incident.

Speaking to the media on the occasion, the minister said that the cost of the KLIP was increased from Rs 80,000 crore to Rs 1.50 lakh crore, but that at the end of the day there was no result from these projects as the structures at the Medigadda, Annaram and Sundilla barrages were damaged heavily.

"What we have been saying regarding the Kaleshwaram project has come true. The dams are currently empty. The KLIP has been designed wrongly and its structures are in a poor state. The redesigning of the projects was about politics than about function. I have asked the ENC to give a written answers to all the questions raised by the ministers," the minister said.

Reddy also said that CM Revanth Reddy had already announced a judicial inquiry into the irregularities in the Kaleshwaram project, and that stringent action would be taken against those involved in the irregularities.

"The previous BRS government also misled the people for years claiming that it had urged the union government for National Status to the project, but the Centre has clarified that no official request had been received from Telangana," Reddy added.

Reddy also alleged that both the BJP and the BRS had done injustice to Telangana in the matter of according the National Status to the Palamuru-Rangareddy irrigation project, and reiterated that the Congress would continue to fight for getting National Status for the project. He reminded the media that both Chief Minister Revanth Reddy and Deputy Chief Minister Bhatti Vikramarka had recently called on the Prime Minister to accord National Status to Palamuru-Rangareddy project.

Earlier, Engineer-In-Chief (Irrigation) C Muralidhar gave a PowerPoint presentation on the Kaleswaram project at Ambatipalli village near the Medigadda barrage.

After inspecting the Medigadda barrage, the ministers also inspected the Sundilla and Annaram barrages constructed across the Godavari river as part of the KLIP.