Khammam: District Collector Anudeep Durishetty urged officials to speed up land acquisition for the Sitarama Lift Irrigation Project. He stressed the urgency to complete these tasks quickly to keep the project on schedule.
During a meeting at the Collectorate on Friday, Durishetty, along with Additional Collector P Srinivas Reddy and Kalluru Division Sub-Collector Ajay Yadav, evaluated the project’s progress. They met with officials from the irrigation, revenue, and forest departments. Durishetty highlighted the project’s goal to irrigate over seven lakh acres and stressed that delays must be resolved swiftly.
He pushed for immediate solutions to any obstacles. He promised that land acquisition payments would be expedited with help from the Deputy Chief Minister and other ministers. “The government aims to release water through Yathalakunta by January,” he stated. Once completed, water from the Godavari will reach the Sathupalli constituency.
Durishetty gave specific instructions. For the 507 acres of forest land needed in Khammam district, alternative land should be provided. In Package 13, 167 acres of patta land are required for a 10-km canal stretch. Compensation should be finalized within a month. For Package 14, the public notification is in progress. Awards should be finalized within three months, and the acquisition of 6 acres should be done in a week. For Package 16, land acquisition must finish within seven days.
He directed officials to complete proposals for land acquisition for distributor canals throughout Khammam. Special survey teams should be assigned, and the distribution canal land survey should be done in 20 days with extra staff. To ensure accountability, Durishetty stated the project’s progress will be reviewed every 15 days.
