Amaravati: Chief Minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu has directed officials of the state Water Resources Department to ensure that no part of the state faces water scarcity. He stressed the need for comprehensive measures to guarantee a year-round abundance of water resources, even if the annual rainfall is low or there are no flood waters from upstream states.

During a review on Thursday at his camp office, the Chief Minister reasoned that, despite lower rainfall this year compared to last year, the state has not yet faced water crisis, thanks to effective water management.

Officials briefed him on the current levels of reservoirs, progress of projects, and groundwater levels. According to them, the state’s major, medium, and minor projects have a total storage capacity of 1,313 TMC, with 1,031 TMC currently stored. The projects are 79 per cent full, having reached this level by the first week of September. This includes major projects like Srisailam, which are at 89 per cent capacity, medium reservoirs at 57 per cent, and minor projects at 39 per cent. The Chief Minister asked officials to resolve issues related to filling the Somasila, Kandaleru, and Brahmam Sagar reservoirs.

The Chief Minister was informed that out of 38,457 ponds in the state, 32,642 still need to be filled to capacity. Officials also mentioned that of the 497 ponds under the HNSS (Handri Neeva Sujala Sravanti) project, 51 have been filled to capacity. The Chief Minister said that filling all the ponds to capacity as soon as possible would provide irrigation to 89,117 acres under the HNSS project. Chandrababu Naidu urged officials to expedite the completion of priority projects worth an estimated Rs 6,518 crore, which will irrigate an additional 281,139 acres and stabilize an existing 338,326 acres.

The Chief Minister reviewed the progress of various projects, including the Pula Subbaiah Veligonda Project, Boddepalli Rajagopala Rao Vamsadhara Project, Sardar Gouthu Latchanna Thotapalli Barrage Project, Tarakarama Thirtha Sagaram Reservoir Project, and the Galeru Nagari Sujala Sravanti.

The Chief Minister specifically instructed that work on the Galeru Nagari Sujala Sravanti, which had been stalled, should be restarted on a war-footing to complete the 108 km stretch and bring water to Kadapa. He emphasised the need to prioritise the completion of the Rs 1,686 crore Srisailam Dam protection and escape channel works.

The Chief Minister announced that the Utterandhra Sujala Sravanti project will be completed within two years, with Rs 1,000 crore allocated this year and another Rs 1,000 crore to be allocated next year. He stated that the project, along with the Polavaram Left Main Canal, will be extended to Visakhapatnam. By linking the Vamsadhara, Nagavali, and Champavathi rivers and filling all reservoirs in the region, a water network can be established to provide a permanent solution to water problems in Uttarandhra, he explained.

Officials mentioned that groundwater levels in the state this year have increased by 1.25 meters compared to last year, with the average level at 8.43 meters as of September 1st. The Chief Minister instructed officials to take special measures, such as constructing farm ponds and check dams, in the 7,762 villages where groundwater levels are below 8 meters. He also directed them to install new sensors within the next three months to get real-time data on groundwater levels.

The review was attended by Water Resources Minister Nimmala Ramanaidu and other senior officials from the department.