Telangana government to spend Rs 10,820 crores for irrigation projects in 2024-25

HYDERABAD: Irrigation Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy outlined the state government's plan to create 30 lakh acres of additional ayacut over the next five years.

Addressing a press conference after holding a review meeting with the top officials at Jal Vihar on Sunday, Uttam Kumar Reddy emphasised the commitment to revitalising the state's irrigation sector for the benefit of farmers. He said the allocated funds would be used for various projects across the Godavari and Krishna river basins.

Key projects in the Godavari basin include the Chinna Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme (Rs 183.96 crores), Modikunta Vagu project (Rs 163.08 crores), Lower Penganga (Rs 147.23 crores), Sripada Yellampally LIS (Rs 545.95 crores), JCR DLIS project (Rs 512.18 crores), and the Sita Rama LIS (Rs 1,487.31 crores). These projects aim to create a new ayacut of 332,006 acres with a total investment of Rs 3,039.71 crores.

In the Krishna basin, the Koil Sagar LIS (Rs 121.56 crore), RBLIS project (Rs 127.34 crores), JNLI project (Rs 67.88 crores), Kalwakurthy LIS project (Rs 489.16 crores), Dindi LIS (Rs 1881.1 crores), and AMR SLBC project (Rs 1,679.66 crores) have been prioritised. These projects aim to irrigate an additional 252,764 acres with a total budget of Rs 4,366.72 crores.

The total proposed new ayacut across both basins is 584,770 acres, requiring a total investment of Rs 7,406.43 crores for the fiscal year 2024-25. Uttam Kumar Reddy stressed the importance of timely completion, adherence to regulations, and transparency in all projects. He warned the officials that negligence and delays would not be tolerated.