Hyderabad: Telangana’s Irrigation Minister Uttam Kumar Reddy on Tuesday made it clear he’s ready to go all out to block the Banakacherla project, declaring the state government would do everything in its power to stop it.
In an informal chat with media persons at the Secretariat, Uttam Kumar Reddy said every possible step had already been taken to stall the project and hinted he’d have more to say in the coming days. “We are committed to preventing this project and will not allow it to proceed under any circumstances,” he said, his tone firm.
Uttam Kumar Reddy added that he’d raised the issue with Union Minister C.R. Patil, laying out Telangana’s objections in detail. “I made it very clear why this project is unacceptable to us,” he said.
He also indicated that the state would soon announce a protest action plan to ramp up the pressure. Meanwhile, officials in Andhra Pradesh are moving ahead, preparing to submit a formal proposal for the Banakacherla project to the Centre. The scheme, estimated at around Rs 81,000 crore, involves transferring water from Polavaram to Banakacherla—a plan Andhra Pradesh says will benefit farmers and local communities.
Finance and irrigation officials in Andhra Pradesh are expected to submit a detailed report today to the Union Ministry of Finance. The project also came up for discussions in recent meetings between Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, the Prime Minister, and the Union Finance Minister, prompting the Centre to seek further details.
