Demanding that the state government stop works on the Dummugudem - Nagarjuna Sagar Sujala Sravanthi Tail Pond link canal scheme forthwith, the Communist Party Of India (Marxist) said that the ongoing works were resulting in creating more problems than benefits.
Talking to media persons after submitting a memorandum about the issue to Chief Minister K Rosaiah on Friday, CPM Floor Leader in the Assembly Julakanti Ranga Reddy said that works on the Tail Pond were aimed at lifting 12,400 cusecs of water from Dummugudem to Tail Pond by utilizing 1,136 MW of power.
Ranga Reddy said that the link canal scheme will not benefit farmers of the area since not a single acre of new ayacut (the area served by an irrigation project) would be created with the scheme.
He pointed out that the lifting of 12,400 cusecs of water would be useful for only the supplementation of 14,12,870-acre ayacut under the left and right canals of Nagarjuna Sagar Project. He also pointed out that 1,136 MW of power used to lift waters would go waste.
Reddy pointed out that farmers in Nalgonda and Khammam districts would lose their 16,000 acres of land due to acquisition for the scheme.
He added that that if Rs 1,900 crore of the Tail Pond link canal scheme was diverted to Pranahitha-Chevella project, lakhs of acres in Telangana of land in Telangana could be irrigated.