Kodandaram dares BRS leaders for open debate on Kaleswaram project

Hyderabad: TJS party founder-president Kodandaram has challenged the BRS party leaders for lying on Kaleswaram and asked them whether they were ready for an open debate on the facts stated by the CAG. He criticised former Chief Minister KCR for taking the wrong decision even after knowing that Kaleshwaram project would not be of any use.

Addressing media persons here on Sunday, he said even Hanumantha Rao, who worked for the United Nations, had said that KCR had not changed his decision even though he did not want to build the Kaleswaram project. He said the contents of the CAG report seem to have been written by them on their own. He alleged that the project was constructed without assessing the financial aspects before its construction. He said the CAG had revealed that the previous government had allotted the Kaleshwaram project works to some people as a complete monopoly.

Kodandaram said it was very difficult to provide irrigation water to the farmers through Kaleswaram and added that it would cost Rs 46,000 to irrigate one acre. Stating that 60 per cent of the power in the State is required for the maintenance of Kaleswaram, he said the construction of Mallanna Sagar in Kaleshwaram project was likely to cause earthquakes in the area. He said Rs 70 crore had been allocated for the construction of Konda Pochamma canal and added that the soil of the Kadem project was washed away in the past while noting that there was no problem in the construction of the Kadem project that followed.

He said the pillars of Medigadda barrage in Kaleswaram had caved in. “If a single pillar of the house collapses, will the house stand,” he asked. He also said in Kaleswaram, the barrage that supplies 80 per cent of the water from Medigadda had shown the same cracks. He alleged that the State was financially ruined by borrowing Rs 87,000 crore. He alleged that the engineering system had been diluted in the construction of Kaleshwaram project. He demanded a thorough probe into the matter. “We will seek rescheduling to reduce the burden on the State government,” he said and added action should be taken to identify those responsible for this change in the situation of Kaleshwaram project. Kodandaram strongly criticized that crores of rupees had been looted in the name of Kaleswaram project in the State.