TS: As funds-crunch hits irrigation projects, failure to control floods

ADILABAD: The Korata-Chanaka barrage and the Komaram Bheem project have failed to prevent floods in their respective areas as they have become just ‘monuments’ now.

The Korata Chanaka barrage constructed on River Penganga on the state’s borders is yet to be completed. The Komaram Bheem project was completed but there are no canals to reach water to fields. Thus both these projects have failed to store the floodwater. Floodwater is being discharged continuously downstream from the above barrage and irrigation projects.

The villages are flooded and agriculture crops were inundated in villages on the banks of Peddavagu by floodwater when the water was discharged downstream and into Peddavagu from the Komaram Bheem project.

The same is the case with the Koarata Chanaka, where floodwater inundated standing crops and entered into villages on the banks of rivers in Jainad, Bela, Adilabad and Bheempur mandals.

BRS MLA Jogu Ramanna wanted to reach water to the fields for this Kharif by seeking completion of all the construction works for the Korata- Chanaka and clearance of the payments towards land compensation. However, it is said that the project is not operational due to a funds crunch.

The Korata-Chanaka barrage aimed to give water to 50,000 acres in Jainad, Bela and Bheempur mandals in the Adilabad assembly constituency.

Already the main canal works of the barrage have been completed but land acquisition is not completed for sub-canals in some places. The state government has to pay compensation for the land acquired from the farmers.

The state government has revised the cost of the construction of the ongoing Korata-Chanaka barrage to ₹795.94 crore. The project with a storage capacity of 0.85tmc water was taken up with an estimated cost of ₹350 crore initially but the cost escalated to ₹500 crore later. The project has 23 pillars and 24 gates.

The irrigation department placed some boulders and small wooden poles on the tarpaulin cover to ensure the cover does not fly in the air. It is said the Komaram Bheem project is facing a flood threat in July 2022.

The bund, located on the right side of the spillway of the project, has been badly affected by the overflowing of recent flood waters and developed cracks.

Hints are that the irrigation department is not getting funds from the state government for the maintenance of the Komaram Bheem irrigation project.

The storage capacity of the Komaram Bheem project was 10.6tmc and aimed to irrigate 30,000 acres of land through the right canal. An additional ayacut of 15,000 acres was added later, which would be irrigated through the right canal. The project was constructed with an estimated cost of ₹ 367 crore.

The left canal was intended to irrigate 20,000 acres of land in Sirpur (T) and Kagaznagar mandals and the supply water to irrigate 4,500 under the Right canal in Asifabad mandal.

Farmer Yadav Rao of Asifabad said the Komaram Bheem project is still not useful to the farmers and its bund has developed cracks due to poor maintenance. “It seems like there is a funds crunch for the maintenance of the project,”  he said.