34 TMC water available in Godavari, Sileru rivers say irrigation officials

16 TMC of Godavari water, released by Telangana without storing it at the Kaleshwaram project, is being stored at Polavaram project to meet the irrigation needs for the Rabi season

The release of water by the Telangana government from the Kaleshwaram project due to technical difficulties enabled us to store the inflows, officials said. | Photo Credit: The Hindu

Godavari Delta Chief Engineer R. Sateesh Kumar said that 34 TMC of water is available in the Godavari and Sileru rivers to meet irrigation and drinking water needs in the Godavari region. Farmers are in need of irrigation water for the Rabi crops.

Speaking to The Hindu, Mr. Sateesh Kumar said; “The Godavari region requires 19 TMC of water both to meet irrigation and drinking water needs in the summer. However, 34 TMC of water is available if the inflows from the Godavari and Sileru are combined.”

In December 2023, the irrigation officials sounded an alert about a shortfall of 8 TMC of water for the Rabi season due to the diversion of water for the Kaleshwaram project in Telangana.

“This year, the Telangana government did not store the water in the Kaleshwaram project owing to technical problems. They have left 16 TMC of water which is stored at the Polavaram irrigation project, enabling us to meet the irrigation needs of the Godavari region in the Rabi season,” said Mr. Sateesh Kumar.