Kaleshwaram gets 2 more clearances

​Hyderabad: The prestigious Kaleshwaram project taken up by the Telangana State Government has got important clearances required from the Centre. The Central Water Commission (CWC) has given its nod to the irrigation planning as well as cost appraisal of the project based on the documents submitted by the state Irrigation department. 

The project had already got environmental and forest stage-1 and stage -2 clearances from Union Ministry of Environment and Forests recently. Top officials of the state Irrigation department said that the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) of the CWC approved the proposals to utilise 237 tmc ft of water. 

Financial feasibility report and economic benefits to the people under the project were explained in detail in the report. The total project cost has been finalised at Rs 80,190.46 crore. Out of which Rs 33,145.46 crore will be utilised for head works and Rs 47,045 crore to construct canals and distributaries. The CWC asked the state government not to change the estimations for a period of three years.  

The Commission approved the government plan to utilise 169 tmc ft of water for irrigation, 30 tmc ft for Hyderabad drinking water needs, 10 tmc ft to meet water needs in the villages across the project, 16 tmc ft for industrial needs and 12 tmc ft is estimated as evaporation from the availability of 237 tmc ft of water. CWC expressed satisfaction on the simulation study report submitted by the government under which water availability in Kaleshwaram will last for 32 years.

Once the CWC grants all clearances, the state government is allowed to seek financial assistance from the Union government and also other external funding agencies, including World Bank at the lowest interest rates. The State government is planning to go in for huge borrowings from the funding agencies to complete the entire project by 2018 end as desired by Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao.

The project also got inter- state clearances, hydrological, Central Ground Water department and Construction and Machinery Directorate permission to take up works recently.