Telangana seeks additional Rs 10,000 crore in central assistance

Hyderabad: The Telangana government has sought an additional Rs 10,000 crore in central assistance to complete major irrigation projects and implement a comprehensive groundwater recharge and conservation programme to tackle the impact of El Nino.

Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, along with Irrigation Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy and Sports Minister V Srihari, met Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on Sunday.

Addressing a press conference later, Uttam Kumar Reddy said the State government had placed several key irrigation-related demands before the Prime Minister. He said the Chief Minister had personally sought the Prime Minister’s intervention in securing pending clearances and financial assistance from the Centre.

The Minister said Telangana had already invested substantial funds in several irrigation projects. However, their completion and operationalisation had been delayed due to pending environmental clearances, inter-State issues and funding constraints.

The State government specifically sought an additional Rs 5,000 crore under the Special Assistance to States for Capital Investment (SASCI) scheme for 2026-27. The funds would be used to complete major and medium irrigation projects that had achieved 70 to 90 per cent physical progress.

Uttam Kumar Reddy said the Union Budget had announced an allocation of Rs 2 lakh crore under the scheme for capital investment by States. However, Telangana had received only Rs 1,457 crore so far.

The State had submitted a detailed representation seeking another Rs 5,000 crore. It explained that several irrigation projects were nearing completion and required only the remaining 10 to 30 per cent of funding to become operational.

The Minister said Telangana had the necessary execution machinery, institutional capacity and financial management systems to utilise the additional funds within the stipulated deadline of March 31, 2027. These included compliance with Public Financial Management System (PFMS) and Single Nodal Agency norms.

Environmental clearances delay irrigation projects

Uttam Kumar Reddy said the Chief Minister had apprised the Prime Minister of delays in securing environmental clearances for the Palamuru-Rangareddy Lift Irrigation Scheme, Sitarama Sagar and Dindi Lift Irrigation Scheme.

He said successive governments had invested nearly Rs 50,000 crore in these projects. However, their progress had been affected by prolonged legal and procedural hurdles.

The Irrigation Minister also sought the Prime Minister’s intervention to expedite the pending No Objection Certificate (NOC) from Chhattisgarh for the Sammakka-Sarakka barrage.

He said substantial expenditure had already been incurred on the project and hydrological clearance had been obtained. However, the final Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) clearance remained pending due to the NOC and other procedural issues.

Telangana had agreed to bear the compensation payable for submergence in Chhattisgarh. It had also met the neighbouring State’s requirements, including obtaining a submergence report from IIT Kharagpur and depositing Rs 10 crore towards an additional Detailed Project Report (DPR) exercise.

Uttam Kumar Reddy said he would meet the Chhattisgarh Chief Minister on November 17 and the Central Water Commission Chairman to pursue the pending clearances.

Rs 5,849 crore sought under PMKSY

The Minister said Telangana had also submitted proposals seeking financial assistance under the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY) for the coming financial year. The proposals covered four projects, including Sitarama Sagar and Sitarama Lift Irrigation Project (Rs 5,183 crore), Modigunta Vagu (Rs 392 crore), Chinna Kaleshwaram project (Rs 171 crore) and Chanaka-Korata barrage (Rs 103 crore).

Highlighting the impact of El Nino on groundwater resources, Uttam Kumar Reddy said several districts were witnessing a substantial decline in groundwater levels amid rainfall deficiencies. Citing the Central Ground Water Board’s September 2026 report, he said groundwater conditions had deteriorated in several parts of Telangana, making the situation a serious concern.

The State government had sought special central assistance of Rs 5,000 crore to implement a comprehensive groundwater recharge and conservation programme. The programme would also be dovetailed with the Viksit Bharat–Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) framework.

The Chief Minister-led delegation also invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the upcoming Khelo India sporting event in Telangana.