Hyderabad: As former Irrigation Minister T. Harish Rao remained silent on the Kannepally debate, the Congress is alleging that BRS Working President KT Rama Rao turned the Kannepally fight into a political one. Harish Rao, who headed the Irrigation Department for ten years, has been criticized for his silence on the technical aspects of the Kaleswaram project, ignoring the warnings of experts. Congress leaders alleged that KTR, who had no background in irrigation, had turned a technical issue into a political one, which reflected BRS’s arrogance.
Citing the National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA) report on the safety of Medigadda, Annaram and Sundilla barrages, Minister N. Uttam Kumar Reddy revealed. Uttam Reddy made it clear that operating Kannepally pumps without following engineering standards is disastrous for the downstream areas and the government will not compromise on public safety. He stated that the issue is not political, but engineering and public safety.
In the KTR Kannepally fight, the lack of understanding of the BRS leadership has been exposed by repeatedly demanding to turn on the pumps despite the warnings of experts. The Congress has alleged that the Kaleswaram project, undertaken at a cost of around ₹1.5 lakh crore, has turned into a financial and engineering disaster. Although the engineers and NDSA have made it clear that the barrages cannot be run until the rehabilitation is completed and safety is confirmed, KTR is going ahead with political statements.
This discussion exposed the difference between engineering facts and political rhetoric. Harish Rao’s silence is strange, but the KTR Kannepalli fight has turned into a political attack. The Congress leaders stated that the future of Kaleswaram project will be decided by scientific assessment and expert opinion and not by political slogans. BRS has been accused of ignoring the opposition’s role in the crisis and ignoring engineering advice.