Key Points

KTR said that the Congress government, at one end, considers Kaleshwaram a failed project, but is laying the foundation stone of the Rs 7,400 crore project from the Mallana Sagar, which is an integral part of the Kaleshwaram initiative.

"It is truly shameful that the Chief Minister and the Congress Party, who on one hand called Kaleshwaram a failed project today, are laying a foundation stone for a Rs 7400 crore project to bring water from Mallannasagar, which is an integral part of Kaleshwaram... We demand that the Chief Minister and the Congress Party apologise to the people of Telangana for continuously lying about Kaleshwaram for the last five to six years," KTR told ANI.

Earlier, on September 1, the Telangana government decided to order a CBI probe into the Kaleshwaram project issue. The government has already constituted a commission, led by former Supreme Court judge Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghose, to investigate alleged irregularities, misuse of public funds, and corruption in the construction of the Medigadda, Annaram, and Sundilla barrages in the Kaleshwaram project, according to a press release from the Telangana CMO.

On September 3, KT Rama Rao condemned the move to conduct a CBI investigation against former Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao, describing it as a disgrace and an insult to the people of Telangana.

"It is shameful to target the visionary leader who secured drinking water for Hyderabad's next 50 years through projects like Mallanna Sagar and Kondapochamma Sagar," KTR said.

He pointed out the hypocrisy of Congress leaders, noting that Rahul Gandhi once dismissed the CBI as "Modi's pocket organisation," while Revanth Reddy now praises it. "This double standard reflects the miserable state of the Congress party," he remarked, as per a release.

The Ghose Commission of Inquiry submitted its report to the government on July 31, 2025. The state cabinet approved the commission report on August 4, 2025. The state cabinet also decided to table the report in the assembly and discuss it in detail.

The Ghose Commission found several irregularities including negligence, deliberate suppression of facts and financial irregularities. The Commission concluded that faults occurred during the construction of the three barrages. The commission also exposed the previous BRS government's failure in preparing the plan to construct the Kaleshwaram project.

The National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA) report stated that Medigadda barrage was damaged due to lack of planning, design and quality control deficiencies. The NDSA has identified that the defects in the construction were due to poor quality and maintenance. The NDSA and the Commission reports have made it clear that a deeper and more comprehensive investigation is required on all these issues.

Inter-state entities, various departments and agencies of the Central and State Governments are involved in this project. Since Central Public Sector Undertakings, such as WAPCOS, and financial institutions, like PFC and REC, are involved in the design, construction, and financing of the project, the government decided to hand over this case to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Hence, the House took a decision to hand over the investigation of the Kaleshwaram project case to the Central Bureau of Investigation.

During the debate on Ghose Commission report in the assembly, Chief Minister Shri A Revanth Reddy said that Kaleshwaram Corporation was formed for the construction of the Kaleshwaram project and borrowed Rs. 85,449 crores. The previous BRS government borrowed Rs. 27,738 crores at an interest rate of 11.5 per cent from Power Finance Corporation and another Rs. 30,536 crores at an interest rate of 12 per cent.

"We have paid Rs. 19,879 crores as principal amount for the loans they took so far. Rs. 29,956 crores was paid as interest to various banks. A total of Rs. 49,835 crores have been paid to banks so far. We still have a burden of Rs. 60,869 crores" the CM said that it required Rs 47,000 crore to complete the leftover works in Kaleshwaram project.

The CM noted that On October 21, 2020, the engineer filed a complaint of the damage of the barrage at Mahadevpur police station. The then Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao has also received a report . Police forces were deployed around Medigadda at that time and not even a single person was allowed to come.

The Chief Minister pointed out that it was KCR who relocated the barrage from Tummidihatti to Medigadda. The reason for changing the technology was the then Irrigation Minister T Harish Rao. The CM alleged that the BRS rulers swindled public money through Kaleshwaram project. The government ordered an enquiry as per the guidelines, CM Revanth Reddy said.

- ANI