Uttam secures in-principle nod from Chhattisgarh CM for Sammakka Sagar Project
HYDERABAD: Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai has given in-principle approval to grant a No Objection Certificate (NOC) to Telangana for the Sammakka Sagar Project on the Godavari River. The decision followed a meeting in Raipur between Telangana irrigation and civil supplies minister Capt N Uttam Kumar Reddy and the Chhattisgarh CM.
Briefing the media later, Uttam Kumar Reddy thanked Vishnu Deo Sai for the positive response and said the NOC was the final interstate clearance required before the Central Water Commission could approve the project. He submitted a memorandum assuring that Telangana would take full responsibility for land acquisition, compensation and rehabilitation in Chhattisgarh.
Storage, irrigation and drinking water benefits
The Sammakka Sagar Barrage is being built at Tupakulagudem in Mulugu district, with a storage capacity of 6.7 tmcft at a full reservoir level of +83 metres. Located downstream of the Godavari–Indravathi confluence, the barrage is aimed at addressing acute water needs in drought-prone and fluoride-affected areas of Nalgonda and Warangal.
The project will stabilise 1.78 lakh hectares under the Sriramsagar Project Stage-II and create a new ayacut of 12,146 hectares under the Ramappa–Pakhal Link Canal. The irrigation potential will extend to Warangal, Suryapet, Mahabubabad, Jangaon, Khammam and Nalgonda districts.
Uttam Kumar Reddy said the project would reduce dependence on contaminated groundwater in Nalgonda and parts of Warangal, improving safe drinking water access for people affected by high fluoride levels.
Extensive infrastructure planned
The scheme involves approach channels, gravity canals, three pump houses, delivery cisterns, and a tunnel network of nearly 90 km, divided into four tunnels of 8-metre diameter, with a discharge capacity of 182 cumecs. Cross-drainage works, regulators and road bridges across canals are also part of the design.
Land submergence and compensation
The project’s backwaters will extend into Bhoopalpatnam tahsil of Bijapur district in Chhattisgarh, leading to submergence of 13.06 hectares of land, 54.03 hectares of river area and 6.35 hectares of nala land. Telangana has assured that it will bear all costs of land acquisition and rehabilitation in Chhattisgarh.
He recalled that Chhattisgarh had engaged the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, to study the impact of submergence, and Telangana was ready to implement its recommendations. Telangana has also offered to make an advance lump-sum payment to Chhattisgarh towards compensation, to ensure there are no financial or administrative delays.
Uttam Kumar Reddy expressed confidence that the process would now move swiftly towards formal approval. “The Sammakka Sagar Project is vital not only for Nalgonda and Warangal but also for stabilising irrigation across large parts of Telangana,” he said.
