Kaleshwaram probe: Ghose panel probing sway of KCR on officials

Hyderabad: Noose appears to be tightening around the bigwigs in the previous BRS government regarding the irregularities in the construction of the three barrages Medigadda, Sundilla and Annaram under the Kaleshwaram project.

Justice Chandra Ghose Commission, which is probing into the allegations, has asked the Irrigation officials and contract agencies to furnish all the details of the instructions which were given by former Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao and other influential BRS leaders to complete the works.

Soon after the government and agencies furnish required information, the commission would summon all those responsible for questioning. The Commission hinted KCR and former irrigation minister T Harish Rao would also be questioned, if required.

The Commission wanted to know if the then Chief Minister and other leaders had given any instructions to deviate from the original designs in the DPR (Detailed Project Report) and inflated the estimations during the construction of the three barrages.

All the irrigation officials who were part of the government team during the construction of the barrages have been asked to submit their replies in the form of affidavits. Ghose said that he had already received reports from Vigilance and CAG on the Kaleshwaram project.

These two reports have nailed the previous government against the construction of the multi-crore lift scheme. The CAG report said Kaleshwaram was not an economically viable scheme. The vigilance report disclosed the KCR government failed in maintaining standards in the Operational and Maintenance (O&M) of the barrages.

The contract agencies have also been asked to submit their statements through affidavits on the safety of three barrages and quality of the construction, the commission said that the affidavits would help in understanding the ground reality of the barrages from the beginning of the construction to the quality maintenance of the structures. “Project designs, execution of the works, financial requirements and operational management were also under study,” Ghose said.