NDSA SLAMS TELANGANA’S Rs 1.47 LAKH CRORE WHITE ELEPHANT AS ‘MOST UNSAFE
Hyderaba Herald Exclusive – January 30, 2026 –
In a bombshell dropped in Parliament, the National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA) has branded the Medigadda Barrage – the beating heart of Telangana’s vaunted Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project (KLIP) – as the most unsafe irrigation structure in India!
Categorized under the dreaded ‘Category I’ – the highest risk level – experts warn that this sinking behemoth could collapse at any moment, spelling doom for thousands downstream. But that’s not all. This so-called engineering marvel has guzzled a staggering Rs 1.47 lakh crore (and counting!), far eclipsing the original Rs 81,911 crore estimate, turning it into a monumental money pit of epic proportions!
From 2019-20 to 2023-24, the KLIP hoisted a whopping 165 TMC of precious Godavari water – enough to quench the thirst of millions. But in a jaw-dropping waste, 63 TMC was dumped right back into the river, unutilized, thanks to killer floods that overwhelmed the system’s flimsy defenses! Subtract that fiasco, and you’re left with 102 TMC. Factor in 10 TMC vanishing into thin air via evaporation, and the net haul? A pitiful 92 TMC.
Of that slim pickings, just 27 TMC trickled into key reservoirs like Kondapochamma Sagar, Mallanna Sagar, and Ranganayak Sagar – supposed lifelines for drought-ravaged farms. Over five years, a measly 65 TMC (averaging 13 TMC per year) was doled out for new irrigation zones, barely wetting 1,40,000 acres annually. And the actual farmland quenched? A pathetic 98,570 acres – peanuts for a project hyped as the world’s largest multi-stage lift irrigation beast!
But the real scandal? The cash hemorrhage! Telangana’s taxpayers are forking out a brutal Rs 18,000 crore annually just to service loans and electricity bills for this – that’s right, even with zero water flowing since the Medigadda piers sank like a stone in 2023!
Loans alone ballooned to Rs 87,449 crore, with re-engineering and endless tweaks jacking up costs from a modest Rs 40,000 crore to this astronomical Rs 1.47 lakh crore nightmare. CAG auditors are screaming foul- redundant works wasted another Rs 768 crore, and the price tag could climb higher still!
NDSA’s verdict is chilling: “Irreversible damage” from shoddy planning, design blunders, and zero maintenance. Piers sinking, sand piping, structural distress – it’s a recipe for catastrophe! Union Minister Raj Bhushan Choudhary laid it bare in Lok Sabha: Medigadda tops the list of India’s three most vulnerable dams, demanding immediate demolition and rebuild of entire blocks.
Farmers furious, politicians pointing fingers – is KLIP a lifeline or a death trap? With floods ravaging barrages yearly and billions swirling down the drain, Telangana’s flagship scheme is drowning in controversy. Officials mumble about “optimizing storage,” but critics cry scam: A Rs1.5 lakh crore boondoggle engineered by negligence!
Will heads roll, or will this sinking ship drag the state under?
