Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy has sought at least Rs 10,000 crore in central assistance to complete major irrigation projects, along with Rs 5,000 crore for a groundwater recharge and conservation programme, during a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi.
The demands were presented as the state seeks to address the likely impact of El Niño, particularly across 365 drought-hit mandals. The additional Rs 10,000 crore request is separate from Rs 20,000 crore in central assistance Telangana had previously sought for measures linked to the expected climate impact.
Irrigation Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy later briefed the media in New Delhi about the meeting. He said the chief minister had requested Modi’s intervention in securing financial assistance, pending clearances and inter-state approvals for several projects.
Reddy specifically sought an additional Rs 5,000 crore under the Special Assistance to States for Capital Investment scheme for 2026-27. Telangana has said that several major and medium irrigation projects have achieved between 70% and 90% physical progress and require only 10% to 30% additional funding to become operational.
The state said it had received Rs 1,457 crore so far under the scheme, despite an allocation of Rs 2 lakh crore in the Union budget for capital investment by states. Telangana has submitted a detailed representation seeking the additional allocation for projects at advanced stages of construction.
The meeting also covered delays in environmental clearances for the Palamuru-Rangareddy lift irrigation scheme, the Sitarama Sagar project and the Dindi lift irrigation scheme. According to Uttam, the Supreme Court had permitted the Union environment ministry to receive and appraise the applications, but the process of examining the proposals had been delayed.
The Telangana delegation also sought central intervention on two inter-state issues. It asked Modi to persuade Maharashtra to agree to raising the proposed height of the Tummidihatti barrage on the Pranahita river from the earlier agreed 148 metres to 152 metres. It also requested help in obtaining a pending no-objection certificate from Chhattisgarh for the Sammakka-Sarakka barrage.
Uttam said he and Revanth Reddy were likely to meet the Chhattisgarh chief minister on November 17 to discuss the clearance. The state has also submitted proposals for financial assistance under the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana for the coming financial year.
The proposals include Rs 5,183 crore for the integrated Sitarama Sagar and Sitarama lift irrigation project, Rs 392 crore for Modigunta Vagu, Rs 171 crore for the Chinna Kaleshwaram project and Rs 103 crore for the Chanaka-Korata barrage.
Revanth Reddy also submitted an action plan for groundwater recharge and conservation. He requested Rs 5,000 crore in special central assistance for the programme, which Telangana plans to dovetail with the Viksit Bharat–Guarantee for Rozgar and Aajeevika Mission (Gramin) framework. The chief minister also invited Modi to attend an upcoming Khelo India sporting event in the state.
