Barrages to be built across Pranahita and Godavari

Irrigation department has conducted LiDAR survey in river Pranahita basin to assess the area to be submerged in the Maharashtra under Pranahita –Chevella irrigation project if taken up at Thummidihatti and suitable places to construct barrages on the river Pranahita in Telangana.

The survey was conducted two days ago in river Pranahita basin in Kautala and Bejjur mandals in the Adilabad district. The survey was also aimed at to identify the suitable places to construct number of barrages on rivers Pranahita and Godavari as part of Pranahita- Chevella project. 

The LiDAR survey was conducted in the river Pranahita basin after conducting the same in river Godavari in Karimnagar district.

Irrigation officials and other LiDAR experts conducted survey to asses the extent of areas in the Maharashtra to be submerged under Pranahita- Chevella in the wake of state government’s decision to construct a project at 152 meters height on river Pranahita at Thummidihatti in Adilabad district and to another one is at Kaleshwaram or Yellampalli in Karimnagar district.

The state government has been claiming that the bordering Maharashtra government is not accepting to submergence of the more acres of lands in their territory with rising height of the project.

Major Irrigation DEE of Karimnagar T. Narasinga Rao who participated in survey said ‘they had conducted a  LiDAR  survey in the upstream of the project located in Maharashtra to asses extent of the land to be submerged under the project if go by the 152 meters height’.

He said they were identifying the suitable places to construct barrages on river Godavari and Pranahita as part of the Pranahita- Chevella project and added they had conducted LiDAR survey on river Godavari from Kaleshwaram of Karimagnar to Badhrachalm of Khammam. The Pranahita- Chevella is aimed at providing water for irrigation in Telangana.

Aspirants gearing up for polls

Candidates aspiring to contest for local body MLC seats and also for nominated posts are tightening their belts following the news that election notification for 12 MLC seats of local bodies may be issued in the last week of September.

It is said that the file regarding three new MLC posts reached to the state election commission after verification from the Chief Election Commission and Law department.

According to sources, nine local body MLC seats are lying vacant and central government created three new MLC seats in Karimnagar, Rangareddy and Warangal districts so that the total MLC seats meet the requirement to Legislative Council.

The MLC seats have fallen to 37 in the Telangana but 40 seats are required to Legislative Council in the state and aspirants are of the opinion that state election commission will issue election notification for total 12 (includes nine lying vacant and three newly created).  

The newly created three MLC seats to be published in the Gazzet and seek objections if any and issue notification for elections for total 12 MLC seats of local bodies.

Some of the senior TRS leaders like party presidents of west and east district Lok Bhuma Reddy and Puranam Satish aspiring to contest in the MLC elections and senior TRS leaders and representative of state government at Delhi S. Venugopala Chary also preparing to contest for MLC local bodies so that he could be inducted in the state cabinet in the next cabinet expansion.

It is learnt that, some of the senior leaders were also trying to for the posts corporation with the cabinet rank in a case they miss the ticket to contest in the local body MLC elections due to caste equations. 

Cotton picking begins early

Commercial operations of cotton will start 20 days in advance first time in the Telangana state after 10 years, in the wake of early cotton picking and arrivals of cotton produce this Kharif. Commercial operations of cotton in the state may begin before September 25 this season, instead of the usual October 20.

Farmer leaders say there has been good growth of cotton plants this season in the Adilabad district due to timely rains and farmers in few villages have even started picking cotton, plants of which were sown during pre-monsoon or earlier.  

Farmer’s leader B. Goverdhan Reddy said marketing minister T. Harish Rao recently asked the marketing and CCI officials in a meeting to advance the cotton purchases 20 days. Seven new cotton purchasing centres, including Gudihatnoor of Adialabad would be set up for that season.

Rangineni Satishrao, big farmer of Guda village in Jainad mandal, said few farmers who sowed cotton during pre-monsoon period or earlier have already started picking cotton in their fields in Lingi and Kuchulapur villages in Talamadugu mandal and will incur loss if there is any delay in cotton purchases as the cotton purchases as the cotton might get discolored and get damp due to the humid weather.

Commercial operations of cotton are being advanced for 20 days forest time in the last 10 years. It happened previously in 2003-04 and 1996-97, he reminded. The cotton crop ripes in 90-100 days and the early operations will help farmers harvest cotton early. 

He said the conditions for growing cotton were good in Adilabad district but situation was different in Karimnagar, Nizamabad and Warangal.

Adilabad district officials have decided to convene a meeting with leaders of farmers, owners of ginning and pressing factories and CCI officials on September 6 to take the stock of the situation and preparations done to start commercial operation of cotton.

Minister Jogu Ramanna said Transco officials will be directed to supply power  to the cotton ginning and pressing factories from much earlier instead October 23 every year to start the commercial operation .

Pranahita-Chevella poses a challenge

 KCR is discussing on re-designing   

An effort for redesigning Dr B.R Ambedkar Pranahitha- Chevella Sujala Sravanti Lift irrigation project by the state government has created tension not only among the people of Adilabad district but also in the state.

The efforts for redesigning the Pranahitha- Chevella poses new challenges regarding sharing of river water within the districts in the state like between the two states.

It also creates many doubts on their due share of the water in the project and basis for giving priority to give water to various districts.

The issue of the re-designing of various irrigation projects proposed during the Congress government came to light with the news that state government was planning to shift the project of Pranahitha- Chevella site to Kaleshwaram in Karimnagar from the existing Thummidihatti in Kuatala mandal of Adilabad.

The proposal for dividing the Pranahitha- Chevella irrigation and constructing at two places in Adilabad and Karimnagar gave enough ammunition to the opposition parties to fight against the state government.

Now, all the major political parties joined the bandwagon against shifting the site or dividing the Panahitha – Chevella project.     

All the major political parties Congress, CPI, BJP, CPI (ML-New Democracy), CPM have launched agitation against state government’s decision to construct same project at two places or shifting the project site. The issue is snowballing into major controversy.

The state government arguing that the construction of Pranahitha- Chevella with the present design was not viable.

Chief Minister K.Chandrasekhar Rao made it clear during his recent visit to Adilabad that the redesigning of the Pranahitha- Chevella will give water to more acres of lands than the earlier proposed ayacut under the old design of the project.

Leaders of various political parties alleged that Chief Minister was making efforts to take major share of water to his own Medak district from the Pranahitha- Chevalla with redesigning the project with no priority to the needs of people of the Adilabad.

Poaching activity rampant in Adilabad