Hyderabad, Sept.4 (RAHNUMA): Irrigation and Civil Supplies Minister N. Uttam Kumar Reddy met Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai in New Delhi on September 3 and urged him to issue an early No Objection Certificate (NOC) for the Sammakka Sarakka barrage, officially known as the Sammakka Sagar Project.
Uttam Kumar Reddy sought Chhattisgarh’s cooperation to enable Telangana to store water up to the barrage’s Full Reservoir Level (FRL) and realise its intended irrigation benefits.
During the meeting, the Minister assured the Chhattisgarh Chief Minister that Telangana would pay full compensation for land and houses in the neighbouring State that would be submerged due to the project. He said Telangana was ready to meet the compensation requirement and work with Chhattisgarh to resolve the pending issues.
“Telangana will pay full compensation for the land and houses that will be submerged in Chhattisgarh. We request the State government to issue the NOC at the earliest to enable us to store water fully in the barrage,” Uttam Kumar Reddy said.
The barrage, constructed across the Godavari at Tupakulagudem in Kannaigudem mandal of Mulugu district, is 1,143 metres long and has 59 radial gates. It has a designed storage capacity of 6.94 TMC at an FRL of +83 metres and envisages diversion of 46.96 TMC of Godavari water for irrigation.
The project’s principal objective is to stabilise 4.40 lakh acres under Stage-II of the Sriram Sagar Project (SRSP), where water supply from the original source has been inadequate. It will also provide irrigation to a new ayacut of 30,000 acres through the Ramappa–Pakhal Link Canal.
The project further envisages stabilisation of part of the ayacut under the Devadula Lift Irrigation Scheme and meeting the drinking-water requirements of villages along the route.
The proposed SRSP Stage-II benefits cover 2,34,199 acres in Suryapet, 96,494 acres in Mahabubabad, 85,774 acres in Khammam, 22,422 acres in Warangal and 1,111 acres in Jangaon districts.
The additional ayacut under the Ramappa–Pakhal Link Canal comprises 8,000 acres in Mulugu and 22,000 acres in the Narsampet constituency of Warangal district.
