Kaleshwaram Project: Vigilance Commission Seeks Action Against 50 Officials Over Medigadda Barrage Collapse

The State Vigilance Commission has recommended criminal proceedings against around 50 serving and retired officials, along with contractor L&T Precision Engineering Systems (L&T-PES), following the collapse of Block No. 7 of the Medigadda barrage under the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project.

The recommendations stem from a Vigilance & Enforcement (V&E) report dated 5 March 2025, which cited serious lapses in the barrage’s design, execution, supervision and quality control, The Hindu reported.

The collapse led to massive financial losses and intensified political tensions in the state.

The Commission directed the Irrigation and Command Area Development (I&CAD) department to launch disciplinary proceedings against 33 serving officials, including engineering and finance personnel.

A further seven retired senior officials were named for penalty proceedings under the Telangana Civil Services (Conduct and Appeal) Rules.

Among those cited are Bhupathi Raju Nagendra Rao, Todupunoori Srinivas, and Cheeti Muralidhar, Engineer-in-Chief (General), among others. Seventeen of the 33 individuals will also face criminal action.

The contractor L&T-PES is accused of violating contractual terms, including faulty secant pile foundation work that directly led to the structure’s collapse.

The agency will be liable to bear the full cost of replacing Block No. 7, the Commission stated. It also charged L&T-PES with falsely declaring project completion despite critical structural deficiencies.

Accountability was extended to top bureaucrats, including Principal Secretaries from the I&CAD and Finance departments, for approving design deviations and financial proposals between April 2015 and October 2023.

The Commission proposed systemic reforms, including mandatory third-party model studies, joint inspections, contract condition compliance, strict equipment verification, and work insurance enforcement.

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