BJP state president and Union Minister G Kishan Reddy said the hollowness of the worlds engineering marvel Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project (KLIP) was exposed today with the report submitted by the experts committee of National Dam Safety Authority (NDSF).
He said that the committee in its report submitted to the Jala Shakthi Ministry has categorically stated that there are fundamental lapses in the project including planning, design, quality control, and operations and maintenance. He said that even the selection of the project site is wrong and now the future of the project at all has become a question mark.
Kishan Reddy said that he would be visiting the project tomorrow and already party leader E Rajender had visited it first.
“After coming to power we will order a comprehensive inquiry and take action against those responsible- who ever it is whether the Chief Minister, Minister, Contractor or officer. There was huge loss of Rs. 1 lakh crore for the exchequer. Super Engineer and Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao must accept the moral responsibility,” said Mr. Ksihan Reddy while speaking to reporters along with former union minister Prakash Javadekar at party media centre established at Hotel Katriya Towers here on Friday.
Stating that a hype was created around Kaleshwaram and it was telecast even in National Geographic channel, Kishan Reddy said that the project cost was escalated from Rs. 40,000 crore in 2014 to 1.3 lakh crore now and it has benefited only KCR family and this was constructed only to loot money.
“With in four years pillars sunk and about 10 tmcft water was released which was expected to get used for drinking and irrigation. Total project was adversely impacted and the future of the project became a question mark. There is no answer from Chief Minister. Why they are silent?” asked Kishan Reddy adding that while annual maintenance and operations cost per acre counts for Rs. 85,000 per acre the income per acre will be only Rs. 40,000. The cost benefit ratio is 1: 05, he added.
“I had lodged a complaint with the Jala Shakthi Ministry after pillars sunk due to piers damage. In 2021 Parliament passed Dam Safety Act under which National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA) was constituted. All State Governments must provide the reports sought by NDSA. Out of the 20 sets of information sought by the NDSA, the State has provide information pertaining to only 11. The other information was not provided even after NDSA wrote a letter on October 27th stating that it was not there. This was nothing but irresponsibility,” he added.
The BJP president said that the project could not be put into use till Medigadda was repaired and it was not sure whether it was possible or not.
