Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation System (KLIS)

Why in NEWS

The controversy began when the Congress and the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) accused the state government of corruption. The Congress party demanded a CBI probe into the alleged irregularities in the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation System (KLIS) project.

Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation System (KLIS)

• Located in Kaleshwaram, Telangana, the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme is a multi-use irrigation project on the Godavari River.
• The project begins where the Pranahita and Godavari rivers converge.
• In 2014, the Kaleshwaram project in Telangana was modified, expanded, and renamed from its original Pranahita-Chevella project in the former Andhra Pradesh.

Pranahita and Godavari rivers converge.

• The Pranahita River and the Godavari River converge at Kaleshwaram in Telangana.
• The Pranahita River is a tributary of the Godavari River.
  • It’s formed by the confluence of the Penganga, the Wardha, and the Waiganga rivers.
  • The Pranahita River flows through the Satpura and Ajantha ranges, the Satpura Plateau, and the plains of Vidharbha region of Maharashtra.
• It meets the Godavari River from its left bank about 304 km below the Manjira confluence near Kaleshwaram temple town.
• The Godavari River is sacred to Hindus. Several places on its banks have been places of pilgrimage for thousands of years.

What is lift irrigation?

Lift irrigation is a method of irrigation that uses external energy to transport water, rather than natural flow. This method uses pumps or other mechanical means to lift water from a lower level to a higher level.

• It relies on mechanical or electrical devices such as pumps to lift water from lower level and make it available for irrigation of nearby fields.
• Lift irrigation is different from flow irrigation, which supplies water directly to soil through channels.

Lift irrigation projects in India: 

• Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation System (KLIS)
• Palamuru-Rangareddy Lift Irrigation Scheme: The first phase of this project was operationalized in September 2023.
• Periyar lift irrigation in Kadungallur, Kerala
• Stage-1 of Dehani lift irrigation scheme
• Maharashtra Lift Irrigation canal in West Godavari district