Hyderabad, February 10: Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) spokesperson Syed Nizamuddin on Monday lashed out at the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) for misleading the public on irrigation projects. Responding to allegations made by BRS MLC K Kavitha, he accused the previous BRS government of mismanaging irrigation projects and failing to secure national status for the Palamuru-Rangareddy Lift Irrigation Project (PRLIP).
Nizamuddin alleged that the BRS and BJP were secret allies from 2014 to 2023 but are now pretending to be political opponents. He said the BRS government had ten years to seek national project status for PRLIP but never submitted a proper proposal in the required format. Despite making over 30 representations, former Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao failed to convince the BJP-led Centre. Now, after losing power, BRS leaders are blaming the Congress government, which has been in office for just a few months, for their own decade-long failures.
The TPCC leader accused the BRS government of spending thousands of crores of public money on irrigation projects but failing to deliver results. “Despite an expenditure of over Rs one lakh crore, the Kaleshwaram project suffered structural damage and failed to irrigate even one lakh acres of land. Similarly, Rs 27,500 crore was spent on PRLIP, yet not a single acre received water. The BRS regime escalated project costs multiple times, leading to financial irregularities while leaving projects incomplete,” he said. He also cited the increase in costs for the Sitarama project from Rs 9,000 crore to Rs 23,000 crore without irrigating any land.
Nizamuddin accused BRS of betraying Telangana by accepting an unfavorable Krishna River water-sharing agreement in 2015. He said the BRS government compromised the state’s interests by agreeing to a 66:34 ratio in favour of Andhra Pradesh. “Now, the Congress government is demanding a 71% share for Telangana, but BRS leaders are questioning this rightful claim,” he stated.
The TPCC spokesperson further alleged that the BRS government facilitated Andhra Pradesh’s construction of the Rayalaseema Lift Irrigation Scheme (RLIS), which hurt Telangana’s irrigation interests. He blamed BRS leaders for delaying necessary actions and failing to counter RLIS effectively, leading to the Centre treating PRLIP and RLIS as similar projects.
He said the Congress government, under Chief Minister Revanth Reddy and Irrigation Minister Uttam Kumar Reddy, is fully committed to improving the irrigation sector. “Unlike BRS, which made empty promises, the Congress government has allocated Rs 22,500 crore for irrigation this year, including Rs 11,000 crore for capital works. PRLIP is a top priority, and we are ensuring its completion by December 2026. This project will provide irrigation water to 12.3 lakh acres and ensure drinking water supply to surrounding areas,” he said.
Nizamuddin accused BRS leaders, including K Kavitha and Harish Rao, of spreading misinformation to defame the Congress government. He clarified that the Congress government has not agreed to hand over Telangana’s irrigation projects to the Krishna River Management Board (KRMB), as claimed by BRS. “It was the BRS government that proposed handing over projects to KRMB and even allocated Rs 200 crore for their maintenance in the 2023-24 budget. The documents presented by then CM KCR prove this,” he said.
He also pointed out the financial burden left by the previous government, stating that the Congress inherited Rs 18,000 crore in interest payments on loans and Rs 9,000 crore in unpaid irrigation bills. “The BRS government prioritised financial gains over irrigation development. While they wasted crores on incomplete projects, the Congress government is now working to complete them and ensure they benefit Telangana farmers,” he added.
Taking a dig at Kavitha, Nizamuddin ridiculed her comparison of KCR to an iPhone and Revanth Reddy to a Chinese phone. “Where was her phone when she was arrested in the Delhi liquor scam?” he quipped. (eom)
