A Rs 6,825 crore lift irrigation project in Telangana’s Kodangal-Narayanpet-Makthal belt is under fire after a fresh tender reportedly went to a company linked to the state’s number-two minister, according to a Telugu-language investigative report published on November 7, 2026. The report alleges the project was turned into a vehicle for contractor profits, with estimates inflated and tender rules bent before a single drop of water has been lifted.

The project was first proposed in 2014 with a preliminary estimate of Rs 1,450.51 crore. It was meant to irrigate close to one lakh acres of dry land in Makthal, Narayanpet and Kodangal. According to the report, the cost has since grown five times over. A government order issued in February 2024 raised the estimate to Rs 2,945.50 crore, with fresh administrative approvals. A later revision pushed it to Rs 4,350 crore, a further jump of about Rs 1,405 crore.

The figures climbed again. The report says a cabinet meeting on February 24, 2026 approved a revised cost of Rs 4,725 crore. The government also reportedly gave a green signal to a Rs 1,000 crore proposal for the Makthal package. Land acquisition revisions were added on top. Irrigation sources put the total at Rs 6,825 crore.

Local residents and officials point out that the ayacut, the area under irrigation, has not grown by even a single gunta. The land required for the scheme is about 3,000 acres. That includes 540 acres for pump houses, eight acres for pressure mains and the rest for main and distributary canals. The irrigation department had earlier estimated Rs 1,404.50 crore for land acquisition alone. The report says that figure has now been pushed to Rs 2,000 crore, though only the land needed for pump houses has been acquired so far.

Critics argue the government’s priorities are misplaced. They say officials are more eager to revise cost estimates than to pay compensation to farmers whose land has already been taken. Work on the canals has not started in earnest, and the land acquisition process for them is still pending.

Two packages, one winner

The first phase of the project was split into two packages. Package one covered the Punch Dev Pahad and Bhutpur pumping stations, along with the development of several tanks. It was tendered at Rs 1,134.62 crore. Package two covered the Utoor and Kanukurthy pumping stations and other works, tendered at Rs 1,126.23 crore.

According to the report, the company linked to the number-two leader won package one. A large construction firm won package two. Both reportedly quoted 3.95 percent above the government’s estimated cost. The report notes that these tenders were not conducted in isolation and alleges that high-level understandings shaped the outcome.

The second phase is where the report says the process went most visibly wrong. Engineers in the irrigation department had prepared a clear proposal to split Rs 1,404 crore worth of work into three separate packages. The aim was to create competition among mid-level contractors and bring costs down. Those works included capacity enhancement of tanks at Jajapur, Daulatabad, Bommraspet, Lakshmipur, Erlapally, Husnabad and Kodangal, along with gravity canals and distributaries.

Instead, the three packages were reportedly merged into a single Rs 2,100 crore package. The report alleges that officials faced intense pressure from the number-two leader, and that the tender drew only four bidders. Two of them, it says, were dummy companies brought in to make the contest look real. The work has now gone to the number-two leader’s company.

A pattern across major contracts

The report argues this is not an isolated case. It points to a series of major projects in and around Hyderabad, including sewage treatment plants, the Mallannasagar to Musi Godavari water transfer works, key radial roads, hybrid annuity model roads and upcoming pumped storage projects. Engineering circles, the report says, consistently show the same company at the front of the race for major tenders.

It also says the company’s position was built over time. The number-two leader, who joined the ruling party after previously being in another party, is described by officials as holding unchallenged influence within the government. Allegations over disputed land deals reportedly did not lead to any action against him. Critics say the pattern of major contracts flowing to one firm points to a deep and close bond between the chief leader and the number-two leader.

Political observers describe the arrangement as quid pro quo. They argue that Telangana has many qualified and prestigious companies, and that the strong preference for a single firm linked to one leader suggests a deal was struck. The report quotes critics who say a farmer-focused irrigation project should not be turned into a source of profit for one company.

Minister’s objections reportedly overruled

The report says the minister responsible for the department raised objections, but they were reportedly brushed aside. Sources cited in the report say the chief leader and the number-two leader pushed ahead with the decisions anyway. Secretariat circles, the report adds, saw a flurry of efforts to pacify the minister, who was reportedly unhappy with the process.

Experts quoted in the report warn that public money is being drained heavily through such arrangements. The report says the state treasury faces a major hit when project estimates are inflated before any work begins, and when contractors are paid for costs that were never necessary.

What the opposition wants

The demands are now coming from the political side as well. Political circles are calling on the government to respond immediately to the rise in the project estimate and to publicly explain how the cost reached Rs 6,825 crore before work even began. Some are pushing for the three packages that were merged into one to be scrapped, and for a transparent re-tender process to be held.

Opposition leaders have also warned that if the government ignores the objections of the minister and officials and pushes through one-sided decisions, the damage will fall on public trust. Their words were direct. In their reported words, the people will teach the government’s top leaders a lesson at the right time.

Opposition leaders warn that the people will teach the government’s top leaders a lesson at the right time, if one-sided decisions continue over the minister’s and officials’ objections.

The allegations are serious and they remain allegations. The report relies on sources, documents referenced in government orders and cabinet approvals, and claims from engineering and political circles. Whether the tender process was rigged, and whether any official was pressured, will depend on independent scrutiny. Until then, the numbers are the story: a project pitched at Rs 1,450.51 crore has become a Rs 6,825 crore project, and the biggest share of its contracts is now in the hands of one company tied to the state’s number-two leader.