Continued from P1

For, the Irrigation Department has belatedly found that delay in de-siltation poses a big threat to the projects during heavy inflows in the monsoon season. So, the Irrigation wing will undertake a detailed study of de-siltation models being implemented in other states and examine best practices that could be adapted to Telangana's conditions. A study of the national framework and guidelines issued by the central government on reservoir de-siltation and sediment management would also be done before the start of the works. At a high-level meeting, Irrigation and Civil Supplies Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy observed that the cost of delayed action could be enormous. He pointed out that severe flooding in Punjab last year inundated 16 of the state's 22 districts, forcing the government to spend nearly Rs 2,000 crore on flood-related damages and compensation. A substantial portion of such expenditure could have been avoided through timely preventive measures, including systematic de-siltation and restoration of drainage and storage capacities, he opined.