Kaleshwaram: State dam safety experts inspection done, advise grouting; NDSA next

ANNARAM: A team of experts from the Telangana State Dam Safety Authority (SDSA) consisting of experts Vijay Desai, Satyanarayana, Rajasekhar, and Anil Kumar visited the Saraswathi barrage in Annaram on Tuesday and suggested grouting as a solution for the seepage found at different points of the barrage. Annaram barrage is a part of the multi-stage Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project (KLIP).

The SDSA visit was a precursor to the visit of the National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA) team to the barrage to inspect the extent of the damage to the raft foundation of the Barrage due to seepages found at different points of the barrage.

Chief Engineer of the Irrigation and Command Area Development Department K Sudhakar Reddy told the media that the department emptied the barrage to facilitate inspections of the pillars by releasing 2TMC of water downstream. He said that NDSA members would visit the Barrage in a couple of days. The SDSA team also visited Medigadda Barrage and inspected the sagged pillars. The State Government requested the NDSA to suggest a plan of action on salvaging the Medigadda Barrage and also the Annaram and Sundilla Barrages which apparently displayed stress at different points.

Meanwhile, unconfirmed ground reports pointed out that the experts said that there was nothing to worry about the safety of the Barrage at this juncture. They said to have suggested chemical grouting to stop seepage.

Afcons Infrastructure Ltd the company that built the Annaram Barrage said to have furnished the details of the chemical substance used in the grouting of the barrage to the team of experts.

The Annaram barrage is 1270 metres long with 66 radial gates. It has 72 piers, each 100 m long, 4 m wide, and 24 m high. The experts visited pillars 28 and 38 where seepage was found and inspected the extent of grouting at that point.