• Tanguturi Prakasam Panthulu’s unfulfilled vision
• Devastating impact on Krishna and Kolleru regions
• Encroachments and delayed progress • A century-long threat continues amid political blame game
Despite a century-long appeal from the people of Krishna and farmers of West Godavari district to resolve the issue of the Budameru rivulet- whose overflow has been inundating Vijayawada for the past six days – the problem remains unsolved. This issue, discussed as far back as during the British colonial government, has seen little progress even after 100 years. Former Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, Tanguturi Prakasam Panthulu, had formulated the Budameru scheme before the construction of the Prakasam Barrage.
However, despite the proposal and subsequent discussions, no significant progress has been made to resolve the flooding issue caused by the Budameru rivulet. The ongoing crisis has led to a blame game between the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and YSR Congress Party (YSRCP). Both parties have accused each other of neglecting the issue, with former Chief Ministers N Chandrababu Naidu and Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy engaging in personal attacks. Meanwhile, the public remains frustrated and outraged as their lands and livelihoods are repeatedly damaged. The Budameru rivulet has a notorious history of flooding farmlands and residential areas in Krishna district, as well as affecting the Kolleru region.
Farmers in the Kolleru region have long demanded the diversion of the Budameru into the Krishna River and the construction of a reservoir to mitigate the risk of floods. In 1956, then-Deputy Chief Minister Neelam Sanjiva Reddy announced that Rs 50 lakh had been allocated for irrigation projects, with the Budameru diversion channel being the priority. However, despite starting the diversion works even before the Prakasam Barrage was approved, the project remains incomplete to this day. Historical records reveal that the government has been aware of the devastating impacts of Budameru floods for over a century. In January 1917, the British government acknowledged that 9,700 acres of land were flooded, causing significant crop damage, with a loss of Rs 5,000. In April 1956, the Socialist Party of Bhimavaram on behalf of farmers appealed to Sanjiva Reddy to construct a reservoir and diversion channel to prevent further loss to farmers.
Despite numerous announcements and partial attempts, the Budameru problem persists. The rivulet, originating in Khammam district of Telangana, splits near Velagaleru in Krishna district, with part of it heading towards the Vijayawada Thermal Power Station (VTPS). Efforts to widen the channel and redirect it were made during the tenure of former Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhar Reddy, but VTPS opposed the plan. One proposed solution is to divert Budameru’s flow towards the sea by controlling the rivulet with the Velagaleru Regulator and constructing the Budameru Diversion Channel (BDC), which connects to the Krishna River downstream of the Prakasam Barrage.
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The BDC was constructed with a flow capacity of 10,500 cusecs, but experts recommend increasing this to 17,500 cusecs to match the design capacity of the Polavaram Right Bank Canal. However, before enhancing the BDC’s capacity, encroachments along the Budameru need to be removed, especially within Vijayawada city. Only after removing these encroachments and building high flood banks can the risk of floods to Vijayawada be minimized. But political parties are hesitating to take action against the encroachments to protect their political interests.
The Chandrababu Naidu-led government allocated funds for the BDC project between 2014 and 2019, but no significant progress was made. The TDP has alleged that the YSRCP had utterly failed in taking forward the BDC. As political parties continue their blame game, the people of Andhra Pradesh, especially the farmers, remain the victims of this century-long unresolved issue. Without decisive action and long-term solutions, the Budameru rivulet will continue to pose a threat to Vijayawada and the surrounding regions.