Narsampet taking water conservation to a new level

The ‘Irrigation Circuit’ will change the face of Narsampet assembly constituency

​Narsampet (Warangal Rural): An innovative project, ‘Irrigation Circuit’ being executed in Narsampet assembly constituency is set to change the face of the constituency and take water conservation practices to a new level.

The essence of the project is to conserve and salvage every drop of water that comes from different sources in the constituency, thanks to Peddi Sudarshan Reddy, the TRS politburo member of Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) and Chairman of Telangana Civil Supplies Corporation.

He is the brain behind the project that envisages reclaiming rain water, water lifted from open wells and bore wells, streams, canals, tanks, water used in agriculture fields and seeps into earth. He conceived and designed the project with zero land acquisition and zero submergence either private or forest.

“The objective of Irrigation Circuit is stabilising and enhancing existing ayacut falling under different sources in khariff season covering two lakh acres of land. During rabi season it will ensure irrigation to nearly one lakh acres” Sudarshan Reddy told The Hans India.

There are different levels in the circuit to achieve the objective. Check dams across major and minor streams, complete redesigning of SRSP canals with three cross regulators and 18 out turns (OTs), inter-linking of existing lakes and tanks are part of it.

The project with such multiple segments is being implemented with an estimated cost of Rs 650 crores and is integrated with Mission Kakatiya. The project’s cost-benefit (CB) ratio is very economical at Rs 65,000 per acre in comparison to the national average of Rs 1 lakh per acre.

Creating a new water source for Pakhala and Rangaya lakes, water from Devadula project on River Godavari will be pumped into those lakes. Madannapet will receive water from SRSP canal and excess water from Rangaya lake.

An innovative ‘cistern’ reservoir is being built with an expenditure of Rs 100 crores, with a radius of 115 metres at Mansingh Thanda. The water from the cistern will be pumped into Rangaya lake which is redesigned to avoid nearly 1800 acres of land acquisition.

Rs 94 crores are already released for cistern construction, works are under progress and expected to be complete in the next six months. Similarly the storage capacity of Madannapet lake is being increased from 0.16 TMC to 0.45 TMC. Rs 307 crores allocated to link Pakhala lake with Devadula lift irrigation project by laying 24 kilometres 2.5 metre diameter pipeline to connect Dabbavagu from where will flow into the lake. State government allowed using Rs 150 worth 4200 pipes procured for Rajivsagar-Dummugudem project which is cancelled.

An important aspect of the circuit is 12 big and 69 small check dams on the streams, where the backwaters will extend to distance of nearly three kilometers keeping the streams alive round the year. It will re-charge open and bore well and ensuring last mile water supply. Nearly 156 tanks will be linked with SRSP canals.

“It took two months to design the project for which walked every nook and corner to have first hand information on the status of irrigation system. A private agency is hired to conduct contour survey to prepare a detailed map,” he explained.

Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao got impressed when he made a presentation in August 2015 on the project and approved it. Sudarshan Reddy has also won accolades from irrigation minister T Harish Rao, waterman of India Rajendra Singh, senior irrigation engineers in the State.

It is aimed to complete ‘Irrigation Circuit’ by March 2018, he said adding “Once the project is completed, Narsampet constituency can withstand drought conditions even for two years”.