Telangana govt accuses NDSA of sending hasty communication on Medigadda barrage

The Telangana government has accused the National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA) of sending a hasty communication to the state government without checking details it submitted with regards to the Medigadda barrage of Kaleshwaram Project.

The Telangana government on Saturday alleged that the National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA) has sent a communication to the state government in haste without checking details it submitted with regards to the Medigadda barrage of Kaleshwaram Project.

NDSA's allegations

The NDSA, which had inspected the Madigadda barrage, had sent a letter to the Telangana government on Friday stating that it did not receive all the details it sought from it.

In the letter to the state government, the NDSA said it found that the Medigadda barrage has been severely compromised, rendering it useless unless fully rehabilitated.

Telangana government's response

Telangana Additional Chief Secretary irrigation Rajat Kumar in a letter to Sanjay Kumar Sibal, Chairman, NDSA, said the department has studied the comments and suggestions comprehensively and noted that many of them are either unsubstantiated or made without a full appreciation of the facts.

The state government said that the Kaleshwaram Project was approved by the Technical Advisory Committee of the Jal Shakti Ministry on June 6, 2018 after thoroughly examining all the aspects like Hydrology, Costing, Irrigation Planning, environmental clearances etc.

In particular, the design of the barrage has been extensively studied by the Costing Directorate of the CWC with respect to functionality and costing, the letter addressed to the Centre said.

The Telangana government also said that a six-member committee led by the Member Disaster & Resilience of NDSA visited the site from October 23 to 25 to conduct a thorough examination of the reasons for the sinking of the piers of the Medigadda barrage.

In a letter to the Telangana chief secretary, NSDA chairman Sibal, said the barrage under the present condition is rendered useless until fully rehabilitated.

The Madigadda barrage row has become a political issue in poll-bound Telangana. The state government has strongly refuted the allegations made by the NDSA and said that the project was approved by the Technical Advisory Committee of the Jal Shakti Ministry after thorough examination.