Commission finds KCR solely responsible for Kaleshwaram ‘collapse'
The Commission of Inquiry, led by Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghose, held the then Chief Minister KCR primarily accountable for bypassing established procedures and ignoring expert advice, resulting in colossal public expenditure and infrastructure now in distress.
The Commission held KCR directly accountable for the irregularities and his involvement and directions minutely were the cause and result of the irregularities and the cause of distress to these three barrages. The then Minister for Irrigation T. Harish Rao, intentionally ignored the Expert Committee report while the then Finance Minister Eatala Rajender demonstrated lack of integrity in safeguarding the financial and economic health of Telangana, the report said.
Key IAS officers S.K.Joshi, then Principal Secretary to Government on Irrigation should be held liable for suppressing the Expert Committee Report and violating rules in administrative approvals while Smita Sabharwal, Secretary to Chief Minister was irresponsible in the discharge of her duties, the report said.
Crucially, the findings reveal that an Expert Committee, constituted in January 2015, had advised against constructing the Medigadda barrage due to high costs and time delays, recommending alternate sites like Vemanapally. But it was intentionally suppressed. The decision to construct the three barrages was not a collective Cabinet resolution but 'the sole and individual decision' of KCR.
The report said shifting the barrage location from Tummidihatti to Medigadda was not based on technical reasoning. Despite the scale of the decision, initial administrative approvals were not presented before the Cabinet. Adding to the irregularity, the Chief Minister wrote to the Prime Minister in February 2016, citing a project cost of ₹71,436 crore even before the submission of the Detailed Project Report by WAPCOS.
The project, initially conceived at ₹38,500 crore, was escalated to ₹71,436 crore for Kaleshwaram, and later saw revised administrative approvals totalling over ₹1.10 lakh crore by March 2022.
The report states that there was 'absolutely no operation and maintenance' of the barrages. The then Chief Minister had ordered continuous impounding of water to enable the pump house operation, an unscientific move as barrages are meant for diversion, not storage. The continuous water impoundment was the major factor leading to structural distress.
The report concluded that the issuance of Substantial Completion Certificates and Final Completion Certificates for Medigadda barrage was 'illegal and tainted with malice,' done to favour the contractors.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
News18
2 hours ago
- News18
Cong govt targeting KCR, BRS leaders through inquiry panels: MLA Harish Rao
Hyderabad, Aug 5 (PTI) The BRS on Tuesday alleged that the Congress government in Telangana is attempting to 'trouble" its president K Chandrasekhar Rao and other party leaders under the pretext of judicial inquiries into the Kaleshwaram irrigation project and other initiatives. BRS MLA T Harish Rao criticised the state government for releasing a 60-page summary of the judicial commission's report on the Kaleshwaram project, describing it as 'false" and 'politically motivated." Reacting to the commission's findings—which held KCR accountable for alleged irregularities in the multi-crore project—Harish Rao questioned the authenticity of the summary and whether it accurately reflects the commission's full 650-page report. 'The government says it will table the report in the Assembly. Once that happens, we will present the facts before the people," he told reporters at the BRS party office, where he made a detailed presentation titled 'Congress conspiracies on Kaleshwaram'. He further alleged that the summary gives an impression of a 'one-sided" judicial commission report and accused the Congress of misusing inquiry commissions to target the BRS leadership. Responding to observations on KCR's direct involvement in project design and execution, Harish Rao claimed, 'It is the chief minister's responsibility to review key projects. How can that be called political interference?" He accused the Revanth Reddy-led government of launching a series of 'politically motivated inquiries to divert public attention from its failures". These include probes into power projects, the Kaleshwaram project, and the Formula-E race. Harish Rao, who is KCR's nephew, maintained that the Kaleshwaram project was developed with all necessary permissions and regulatory clearances. He also recalled that judicial commissions set up in the past—including against leaders like Indira Gandhi and N Chandrababu Naidu—had not held up under judicial scrutiny. The judicial commission, appointed by the Congress government, reportedly found the former chief minister 'directly and vicariously" responsible for irregularities in the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project. The state cabinet, which met on Monday at the Secretariat, discussed and accepted the commission's findings. Chief Minister Revanth Reddy said the government would soon convene a session of the Assembly to hold a thorough debate and decide the future course of action. The Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project, located on the Godavari River in Bhupalpally district, is a multi-purpose irrigation initiative. Damage to its barrages—constructed during the previous BRS regime—emerged as a key issue in the 2023 Assembly elections. In 2024, the Congress government ordered a probe into alleged irregularities surrounding the Bhadradri and Yadadri power projects, also initiated under the BRS administration. The state's Anti-Corruption Bureau filed a case against BRS leader K T Rama Rao, accusing him of sanctioning payments—mostly in foreign currency and without approvals—for hosting the Formula E race in Hyderabad in February 2023, during the BRS rule. Rama Rao held the Municipal Administration portfolio in the BRS government. PTI SJR SJR SSK view comments First Published: August 05, 2025, 20:30 IST Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
The Hindu
3 hours ago
- The Hindu
BRS will expose hollowness of commission's report on KLIP in the Assembly: Harish Rao
Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) senior leader and former irrigation minister T. Harish Rao termed the PC Ghose commission's report on the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project (KLIP) as 'baseless', stating that they would expose its hollowness once it is tabled in the Assembly. Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy on Monday announced that Commission's report would be tabled in the Assembly for a detailed a debate during a special session of the Assembly. Taking strong exception to the Commission's finding, which held former Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao solely responsible for the irregularities in the execution of the project, Mr. Rao claimed that it was indeed a decision approved by the then Cabinet as well as the Assembly. Presenting a detailed report to the media at BRS Bhavan here on Tuesday, Mr. Rao alleged that the Congress government led by Revanth Reddy was deliberately distorting facts about the KLIP to merely malign the image of KCR and cause 'trouble' to him. Regarding the decision to shift the barrage site from Tummidihatti to Medigadda, he said that the decision was taken upon the advice of the expert committee. 'The Central Water Commission (CWC) also clearly stated that Tummidihatti would not ensure sufficient water availability (160 TMC). It was also acknowledged by then Union Minister Uma Bharati,' he said, adding as many as 11 Central government agencies gave nod for the project. Refuting the reported comments of Irrigation Minister N. Uttam Kumar Reddy that the Maharashtra government had accepted the proposed Full Reservoir Level (FRL) of 152 meters barrage at Tummidihatti, Mr. Harish Rao said that it had indeed turned down the plea for the same FRL, prompting the KCR government to consider shifting the barrage. He also claimed that a retired engineers' committee had submitted a sworn affidavit to the Kaleshwaram Commission confirming that Medigadda was the most technically suitable site. 'The retired engineers' committee had only advised against direct water pumping from Medigadda barrage to Mid Manair Dam (MMD) due to geographical and topographical challenges. As per the committee's recommendations, all design modifications were done and opted to pump water to Yellampally, leading to the river-based route via upstream barrages — Annaram and Sundilla,' he explained. Questioning the National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA) about its alleged hasty visit to Medigadda, he asked why it had visited the Polavaram project, which had collapsed three times. He alleged that both the BJP and Congress had conspired on the issue with an intention to defame BRS for political gains. The former minister said the Congress had failed to secure even a single permission for the Pranahita-Chevella Sujala Sravanthi scheme during their 10-year tenure.
India.com
4 hours ago
- India.com
Nitish Govt Reserves 84.4 Pc Teaching Posts For Bihar Domicile Candidates Ahead Of Assembly Polls
PATNA: In a major decision with significant political and social implications, the Bihar Cabinet, led by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, on Tuesday, approved a proposal to reserve 84.4 per cent of teacher recruitment posts for the residents of the state. The move comes months ahead of the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections, reflecting a clear push to prioritise local candidates in the state's education sector. The decision was part of the Bihar State School Teacher Appointment, Transfer, Disciplinary Action and Service Condition (Amendment) Rules, 2025, which was among the 36 proposals approved in Tuesday's Cabinet meeting. As per Cabinet Secretariat's Additional Chief Secretary S. Siddharth, Bihar already has a 50 per cent caste-based reservation, 10 per cent reservation for economically weaker sections (EWS) for the general category, and 35 per cent horizontal reservation within categories for women of Bihar origin. From the remaining 65 per cent of the general category seats, the Cabinet has now decided that 40 per cent of these seats will be reserved for candidates, who have passed matriculation (Class 10) and intermediate (Class 12) from any board within Bihar. This leaves just 15 per cent of the total seats open to all candidates, including those from outside Bihar. The Cabinet noted that even if 10 to 15 per cent applicants are from outside Bihar, the structure ensures that about 84.4 per cent of all teaching posts will effectively go to Bihar domicile candidates. This decision aligns with growing calls for local job preference and echoes similar policies in other Indian states. In the backdrop of upcoming elections, the move is being viewed as a strategy to consolidate regional and youth support, particularly among aspiring teachers, who have long demanded greater representation in the education system. While supporters hail the move as a step towards employment justice for locals, some experts anticipate that the 15 per cent open category may become a point of legal and political contention, especially for non-domiciled aspirants. Apart from the domicile policy, the Cabinet has doubled the honorarium of physical education teachers, cooks and night watchmen.
