Complete Sundilla barrage restoration work on a war footing: Uttam Kumar

Manthini (Peddapalli) : Irrigation Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy has directed the concerned engineering officers and contracting agencies to complete the restoration work of Sundilla Barrage on war footing.

On Friday, the Minister visited the Sundilla (Parvathi) barrage constructed at Siripuram village in Manthani mandal as part of his visit to the three barrages constructed in the Kaleswaram project.

According to the instructions given by the National Dam Safety Authority, the repair and restoration works should be completed expeditiously, the progress of the works at the field level is not showing results as expected and additional teams engaged to speed up the work. The schedule should be prepared and provided on paper, by which time the work will be completed, he told officials and contractors.

The minister directed the concerned engineering officer to assess the damage caused to the local people due to the embankment being constructed for the protection of the pump house near the Sundilla barrage and submit proposals indicating the ways to solve them.

Project ENC Anil Kumar briefed the minister about the details of the works being carried out at the field level as per the directives of the National Dam Safety Authority. ENC said that work has been undertaken to preserve the three barrages during the coming monsoon season and prevent any further damage.

He said that measures are being taken to restore the washed away sand at Sundilla Barrage, geo-physical and geo-technical general tests were carried out after assessing the washed away sand. As per the Minister’s orders, the works will be accelerated at the field level and the restoration work will be completed in the next ten days.

Later, speaking to the media Uttam Kumar Reddy said that during the previous government’s tenure Medigadda barrage collapsed but no repairs were undertaken due to neglect, and after coming to power, Congress government taken steps to restore the 3 barrages involving the National Dam Safety Authority.

The minister said that the judicial commission set up by his government under the leadership of former Supreme Court judge Justice will also visit the project to examine the irregularities in the construction of the Kaleswaram project. The minister stated that as per the promise given during the election, the barrage at Tummidihatti would be constructed.

Later, he visited the Annaram (Saraswati) barrage in Bhupalpalli district and speaking to the media said the review the Kaleshwaram project could not done because of the election code. Kaleswaram was built with a loan of Rs 94,000 crore. Annaram and Sundilla barrages are in danger. An expert committee headed by Chandrasekhar Iyer made interim recommendations. The expert committee said that the gates of three barrages should be lifted. Even if repairs are done, water should not be stored.

The costs of barrage tests and repairs are borne by the construction companies. The ongoing works in Medigadda and Annaram Barrage are satisfactory and warned the contracting agency Navayuga for delaying Sundilla work, Uttam Kumar Reddy said.