BRS Legislature Party deputy leader and former Minister T Harish Rao has urged the Telangana government to operate all available pumps and use the ongoing Godavari floodwaters to fill depleted reservoirs.
In a letter to Irrigation Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy on Friday, Harish Rao said heavy inflows were entering the Godavari while several reservoirs in Telangana remained low. He urged the government to run pumping stations continuously instead of operating them intermittently.
Harish Rao said reservoirs linked to the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme (KLIS) were facing low water levels. He pointed to Annapurna and Ranganayaka Sagar, which he said were in dead storage. He also said Mallanna Sagar had around 13 TMCft against its 50 TMCft capacity.
He suggested pumping water from the Yellampalli project to refill several reservoirs. According to his statement, this could support irrigation across nearly five lakh acres and help meet drinking water needs.
Harish Rao also asked the government not to blame El Niño for the water shortage and to focus on using the available Godavari flows.
