Sammakkasagar: The Lifeline Project Gets Green Light

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai has given in-principle approval to issue a No Objection Certificate (NOC) to Telangana for the Sammakkasagar project on the Godavari River—marking a significant milestone in the project's advancement.

The approval follows a meeting with Telangana Irrigation Minister N. Uttam Kumar Reddy, who assured that the Telangana government will take full responsibility for land acquisition, compensation, and rehabilitation within Chhattisgarh. This NOC represents the final inter-state clearance required before the Central Water Commission can formally approve the project.

Sammakkasagar, proposed at Tupakulagudem in Mulugu district, is designed with a storage capacity of 6.7 TMCFT. It is a key initiative aimed at addressing chronic water scarcity in drought-prone and fluoride-affected districts such as Nalgonda and Warangal.

The project seeks to stabilise irrigation over 1.78 lakh hectares under the Sriramsagar Project Stage-II and create an additional 12,146 hectares of new irrigated land across several districts. It also aims to reduce reliance on fluoride-contaminated groundwater by providing a safer and more sustainable drinking water source.

While the project involves some land submergence in Chhattisgarh’s Bhoopalpatnam tehsil, the Telangana government has acknowledged the concerns and committed to addressing them with due seriousness.

News by Rahul Yelligetti.