The final report of the ongoing Vigilance and Enforcement (V&E) Department inquiry into the sinking of the piers of Medigadda bof the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project (KLIP) has reached a standstill with the sudden death of V&E Director General Rajiv Ratan on April 9.
Drafting of the final report was about to be taken up when the head of the inquiry passed away, after examining, collecting information, the engineers involved in planning, design, execution and operation and maintenance with a set of about 150 questions was already completed. The engineers who were examined included an Engineer-in-Chief, and several Executive and Deputy Executive Engineers.
The D-G was planning to place a request before the government to expand the scope of the V&E inquiry to encompass the other two barrages — Annaram and Sundilla — and the three pumphouses linked to the barrages to find out whether the submergence of the pumphouses in the July 2022 floods has any link with the damage of Medigadda barrage and problems in the other two barrages.
“By seeking expansion of the scope of inquiry, the D-G wanted to unearth the other black sheep in the remaining stages of KLIP till Kondapochamma Sagar as the information tumbling out in the inquiry has given rise to suspicion over the riddles in the other components of the project,” a V&E source explained.
The inquiry team which comprises engineering experts is of the view that why the project engineers have failed to anticipate damage to the barrages after the pumphouses were flooded. There could be a similarity in the damage of Medigadda barrage and the Kannepally pumphouse linked to it as the agencies have constructed coffer dams at both the facilities to divert river water during construction and the coffer dam in upstream of Medigadda has a role in the barrage damage.
“We have everything ready and only require consolidation and compilation of the information collected with the guidance and clearance of the head of the inquiry,” sources in the department told The Hindu. They had a set of questions that included about one-fifth of common ones posed at all levels of engineers. Though the engineers were reluctant to open up and were evasive on several aspects, the information was collected by going in a round-about fashion.
By examining the engineers, the V&E investigating officers were working on fixing responsibility, in case they were involved, and later call the work agency, L&T, for fixing responsibility as summoning them without any prima facie evidence includes the danger of them moving court.
