SC asks CWC & Godavari Board to consider revised DPR of Kaleshwaram project

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday asked the Central Water Commission (CWC) and Godavari River Management Board (GRMB) to consider the Telangana government’s revised detailed project report (DPR) relating the Kaleshwaram lift irrigation scheme (KLIS) which is already pending with two authorities.

A bench comprising Justice K.M. Joseph and Justice B.V. Nagarathna gave the order after the bench was told that the top court’s July 27, 2022, order of status quo was being cited in not perusing the report.

The government is seeking to expand the intake capacity of the project to 3 tmc ft (thousand million cubic ft) from 2 tmc ft, so as to ift 240 tmc ft in the rainy season.

The court clarified that its status quo order pertained to the physical aspects of the project and did not impede the Telangana government from going ahead seeking different clearances relating to the expansion of the KLIS, senior lawyer Gopal Sankaranarayanan told Deccan Chronicle. .

All the petitioners before the High court have challenged March 29, 2022, order of the Telangana High Court.

The top court had on July 27, 2022, ordered the status quo on the KILIS as the court was then told that the the Telangana government was going ahead with the project expansion without environmental clearances.

The Telangana government on July 27, 2022, had told the top court that petitions were politically motivated and farmers who were going to be impacted had accepted the compensation and rehabilitation package.

While the Telangana government had said that they have environmental clearance for the original lift irrigation project and the same would hold good for the project expansion, the top court had observed that any expansion without requisite environmental clearance may eventually come in the way of the project, and impede it.

The top court is hearing a batch of petitions by Sriram Gangajamuna, Gangadhara Surender, Cheruku Srinivas Reddy, Vuppu Lingaiah, Varala Sudhakar, Edumyakala Gangaiah, Varala Mallaiah, Dandaveni Yellamma, and other questioning the expansion of the lift irrigation project on the ground of the absence of environmental clearance.

They have contended that the environmental clearance for the original project would not hold good for the expansion of the project.