Hyderabad: N Uttam Kumar Reddy, the Irrigation Minister, criticized BRS leader T Harish Rao for misleading farmers in Palamuru. He claimed the Congress government aims to assist farmers, while BRS leaders intend to confuse and scare them.
Uttam responded to Harish Rao’s call to activate the Kannepalli Pump House motors. He accused the BRS of deceiving farmers with false claims. Uttam compared Harish Rao’s alleged misinformation to Goebbels, emphasizing that Telangana farmers achieved record paddy cultivation last year. Despite this success, Uttam said Harish Rao continues to spread lies.
Uttam recalled similar tactics by BRS before the Rabi season, leading to panic among farmers. He outlined that during the last monsoon, farmers grew paddy on 66.7 lakh acres, yielding 153.5 lakh metric tonnes. In Rabi, they cultivated 60 lakh acres, producing 130 lakh metric tonnes. Under Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, the Congress government set a record by producing 283 lakh metric tonnes of paddy in one year.
He blamed the collapse of the Medigadda barrage on BRS’s mismanagement. He also noted that the Annaram and Sundilla barrages are at risk. The National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA) criticized the construction of Medigadda. Uttam claimed that 57 TMCs of water, lifted from Medigadda to other barrages, were unnecessarily released into the sea.
Uttam assured that the Congress government will follow NDSA’s advice on these projects, dismissing Harish Rao’s statements.
