Special Survey Teams To Handle Sitarama Project Land Acquisition

 Hyderabad: Irrigation minister N. Uttam Kumar Reddy on Saturday said special teams will be constituted for surveys in order to expedite land acquisition for the Sitarama lift irrigation scheme project designed to create 3.28 lakh acres of new ayacut.

He was speaking at a review meeting on the progress of works on the project that was attended by agriculture minister Tummala Nageswara Rao and senior irrigation department officials at Jal Soudha here.

Instructing officials to ensure acquisition of 993 acres of land still needed for the project in addition to the 6,234.91 acres that has already been acquired, the minister said that the government has set a July 2025 deadline for completion of the project. In addition to creating new ayacut upwards of three lakh acres, the project will also come in handy to fill 500 tanks and lakes, which, in turn, can irrigate another 1.16 lakh acres.

So far Rs 6,401.95 crore have been spent on the project, Reddy said, adding that the government was committed to completing the project on schedule. It will provide irrigation and drinking water to Khammam, Bhadradri Kothagudem and Mahabubabad districts, he said.

Those present at the meeting included principal secretary (irrigation) Prashant Jeevan Patil and engineer-in-chief (general) C. Anil Kumar.