Harish Rao flays govt. for its ‘failure’ to operate all pumps of Devadula - The HinduPublished - July 21, 2026 07:00 pm IST - HYDERABADBRS leader T. Harish Rao speaking on lifting Devadula project water, in Hyderabad, on Tuesday.HYDERABADDeputy Floor Leader of the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) in the Assembly T. Harish Rao has termed the State Government “failure to switch on all pumps of Devadula project when sufficient water is flowing in the river” as criminal negligence.He reminded that Deputy Chief Minister M. Bhatti Vikramarka along with other Ministers had announced that all the pumps would be operated from July 14 to fill 22 online reservoirs of the project with 38 tmc ft of Godavari water. However, out of the 10 pumps, 7 were operated on July 13 and only 5 from July, Mr. Rao pointed out, addressing a press conference here on Tuesday.The farmers who had believed the Minister’s word had raised nurseries but were now facing the threat of nurseries not growing beyond the transplantation stage since their fields were not being provided water for irrigation.The BRS leader explained that against the required level of water flow at 73 meters, the Godavari was flowing at 78 meters level at Sammakka Barrages. As a result of operating only a limited number of pumps, only 1.9 tmc ft water was lifted so far against the possibility of 12 tmc ft.Further, he explained that over 105 tmc ft of water was let downstream from Sammakka Barrage from June 1 - including 96.4 tmc ft in the first 20 days of July, accusing the government of helping Andhra Pradesh. He said that only 5 pumps were operated till July 20 - with the information that he was holding a press meet on the issue on Tuesday - two more pumps were switched on in the morning. The government’s negligence had pushed large parts of the erstwhile Warangal district into an avoidable drought.He asked why the government was not utilising the Devadula system when there was no technical impediment. “There is no NDSA issue here. Water is available, pumps are available and power is available. Then why is the government refusing to lift water?”, he asked.Published - July 21, 2026 07:00 pm ISTSign in to unlock member-only benefits!Access 10 free stories every monthSave stories to read laterAccess to comment on every storySign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single clickGet notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products${ ind + 1 } ${ device }Last active - ${ la }