Syllabus

GS 3: Infrastructure: Energy, Ports, Roads, Airports, Railways etc.

Disaster and disaster management.

Context: 

The National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA) has found “irreparable damage” in the three barrages that are part of the world’s biggest multi-stage lift irrigation project.

More on the News

• In February 2024, four months after an incident of flooding at the biggest of the project barrages, the state government asked the National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA) for a thorough inspection.
• NDSA, in its report on the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme (KLIS), the report reveals significant structural issues in the Medigadda, Annaram and Sundilla barrages.
• The Medigadda barrage has suffered irreversible damage, with cracked and displaced piers and rafts, rendering it unfit for further gate operations.

Kaleshwaram lift irrigation project (KLIP)

• The project is located on the Godavari River in Telangana.
• It is set to be the world’s largest multi-stage lift irrigation project.
• The Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project (KLIP) on the Godavari River in Telangana’s Jayashankar Bhupalpally district across the border from Maharashtra will supply water for irrigation, industrial, and domestic uses over a swath of northern Telangana.
• It was initiated on June 21, 2019, under the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) government.
• Unlike gravity-based systems, this project uses pumps and surge pools to lift water to a delivery chamber at the highest elevation for onward distribution.
• The project sprawls over approximately 500 km in 13 districts, with a canal network of 1,800 km.
• According to the project master plan, of the 240 thousand million cubic feet (TMC) of water, 169 TMC, or more than 70%, is meant for irrigation.
• The vast bulk of this water — 195 TMC — will come from the Medigadda Barrage

UPSC Mains Practice Question

Q: Critically examine the objectives and challenges of the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project (KLIP). What lessons does it offer for future large-scale irrigation infrastructure in India?