BRS warns of protest at CM’s residence over Hyderabad water crisis
Hyderabad, Oct 24 (TNT): BRS legislators from Hyderabad and Ranga Reddy districts on Saturday warned of a protest at Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy’s residence, along with city residents, if the government failed to immediately lift Godavari water from the Kannepalli pump house to address the looming drinking water crisis in Hyderabad.
A delegation of BRS MLAs, including D. Sudheer Reddy, Madhavaram Krishna Rao, K.P. Vivekanand Goud, Marri Rajashekar Reddy and Bandari Laxma Reddy, along with former minister Errabelli Dayakar Rao and former MLA Gandra Venkata Ramana Reddy, visited the Kannepalli pump house, part of the Kaleshwaram project, and alleged that valuable Godavari water was flowing downstream into the sea without being utilised.
Addressing a press conference after the visit, Vivekanand Goud alleged that the Congress government had failed to operate the pumps despite the availability of water, aggravating concerns over Hyderabad’s drinking water supply. Citing estimates, he claimed that more than 750 TMC of Godavari water had flowed into the sea since June.
He argued that lifting about 250 TMC could have helped replenish reservoirs and tanks, improve groundwater levels and meet drinking water requirements.
He further claimed that 10 TMC would be sufficient to meet Hyderabad’s drinking water needs for a year and urged the government to resume pumping immediately.
Vivekanand Goud said BRS working president K.T. Rama Rao (KTR) had visited the site in July and warned the government about a possible water crisis in view of El Niño conditions.
He criticised the government for allegedly failing to act on the concerns raised earlier.
MLA Marri Rajashekar Reddy said residents in several parts of Hyderabad were reporting irregular supplies and low water pressure.
He cited complaints that some localities were receiving water once every three days and said officials had attributed the situation to declining storage in the Singur and Manjeera reservoirs.
D. Sudheer Reddy accused the government of failing to address concerns over the Medigadda barrage, including an alleged blast targeting its piers, and claimed that repairs had not been undertaken.
He also pointed to the growing dependence on water tankers, claiming that around 7,000 bookings were being made daily in October.
Former minister Errabelli Dayakar Rao alleged that the government was deliberately undermining the Kaleshwaram project and demanded immediate action to lift water.
He recalled that the previous BRS government had maintained essential services, including water and power supply, during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Former MLA Gandra Venkata Ramana Reddy also criticised the Chief Minister and demanded that the government immediately operate the Kannepalli pumps to prevent a drinking water crisis in Hyderabad.
The Congress government has yet to respond to the allegations made by the BRS delegation.
TNT TS
