Rs 38,000cr irrigation project in Andhra

The Andhra Pradesh government will take up a massive Rs 38,500 crore lift irrigation project to take Pranahita river water to the parched lands in Telangana region to provide irrigation facility to an additional 16.40 lakh acres.The Pranahita-Chevella Sujala Sravanthi project, involving diversion of 160 tmc of water to benefit seven drought-prone districts, would be completed in four years, the Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhar Reddy told reporters .Reddy will lay the foundation stone for the prestigious project at Chevella in the neighbouring Ranga Reddy district.Billed as the largest lift irrigation project ever taken up in the country, it envisages lifting water to a height of 493 meters to provide irrigation facility to the upland areas in Telangana region. A massive 3,375 MW of power would be required to lift the water and the total length of the system would be 700 kms including 512 km-long gravity canal and 188 km tunnel. "This will fulfill the long-pending dream of the people of Telangana region, the chief minister said.