Copious inflows into the Pranahita at Medigadda barrage of the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project in Mahadevpur mandal of Jayashankar Bhupalapalli mandal had rekindled hopes among the farming community, which was in despair due to the delayed monsoon this year.
Scanty rainfall had cast its shadow on the cultivation of cotton, maize and other irrigated dry (ID) crops in the erstwhile undivided Karimnagar district.
Following heavy inflows into Pranahita river, the irrigation authorities had closed all the 85 flood gates of Medigadda barrage to store the water, which has risen to 3 tmcft. The authorities have started lifting the water to Annaram barrage by pumping water from the Kannepalli pump house. Now, Annaram barrage has 2.5 tmcft of water against its full capacity of 10.52 tmcft and the backwaters from the project have already reached the Manthani town. People are visiting the river bank in large numbers to have a glimpse of the rising waters. Once the water level reaches 4.5 tmcft at Annaram, the water would be pumped to Sundilla barrage.
Incidentally, the erstwhile undivided Karimnagar district would be the first beneficiary of the KLIP as the waters would be filled in Annaram and Sundilla barrages, Sripada Yellampalli project, Mid Manair Dam, Lower Manair Dam, SRSP flood flow canal would be filled with water and through reverse pumping system the water would be filled into the SRSP to stabilize the ayacut of the project.
Villagers all along the river Godavari were making a beeline to watch the river water flowing in the reverse direction to the upstream projects constructed as part of the KLIP. On Thursday, Minister for Social Welfare Koppula Eshwar, Ramagundam legislator K. Chander, ZP chairman P. Madhukar and others offered prayers to the river at Manthani town.
Rythu Ikya Vedika district president Maduganti Venkat Reddy said the KLIP would permanently remove drought from the erstwhile undivided Karimnagar district.
The flowing of river waters from the downstream Medigadda to the upstream MMD, LMD and SRSP would definitely benefit the farmers of the respective command areas, the farmer leader maintained.
