Hyderabad: Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy will meet his Maharashtra counterpart Devendra Fadnavis in Mumbai on Monday to seek the state govt’s approval for constructing Tummidihatti barrage at a height of 152 metres, aiming to address the long-standing irrigation and drinking water requirements of northern Telangana .
Telangana maintains that increasing the barrage height from the previously agreed 148 metres to 152 metres would enable it to divert a larger volume of water from the Pranahita river, a tributary of the Godavari, and substantially improve irrigation facilities in the undivided Adilabad district and other parts of northern Telangana. A barrage at 152 metres would submerge approximately 2,300 acres of land in Maharashtra, while construction at 150 metres would limit the submergence to less than 1,000 acres,” a senior official said, according to experts. The meeting assumes significance as Telangana has been seeking the intervention of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Union jal shakti minister to facilitate negotiations with Maharashtra govt over the project. “One of the major issues to be discussed with Maharashtra is the extent of land that will be submerged if the barrage is constructed at the proposed height. The original plan envisaged a barrage on the Pranahita river to divert water primarily through gravity canals and with minimal pumping, supplying irrigation to upland areas, including parts of Adilabad, and extending towards the tail-end areas of Rangareddy district through the Yellampalli reservoir. The Congress govt is now seeking to revive the focus on Tummidihatti, arguing that the original source and a revised barrage height could offer a long-term solution for irrigation requirements in northern Telangana.
The Tummidihatti proposal is linked to the original Pranahita-Chevella project, conceived under the Congress govt before the bifurcation of the undivided Andhra Pradesh. As per the tentative schedule, Revanth, irrigation minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy, and a high-level delegation of irrigation officials would travel to Mumbai on Sunday evening for the crucial interstate discussions. Sources told STOI that the chief minister’s office (CMO) received communication from the Maharashtra govt to come for talks on Monday.
The Telangana delegation is expected to present the technical findings, water requirements, submergence estimates and compensation proposal to make a case for the project during the Mumbai discussions.