Overview
- Senior BRS leader T. Harish Rao sent a formal letter on Thursday pressing the Polavaram Project Authority for immediate compensation, permanent rehabilitation for about 2,000 families, new embankments, pumping and treatment plants, and a local PPA divisional office.
- PPA and Central Water Commission teams toured Kothagudem on June 4 to assess backwater effects and said they will identify submerged villages from surveys and submit a report to the Union government.
- Harish Rao and local MLAs warned that the Polavaram project's full reservoir level of 45.72 metres matches Bhadrachalam’s first flood-warning level, a technical parity they say creates a lasting upstream flood risk.
- Local elected officials cite the 2022 backwater flooding that submerged roughly 40% of Bhadrachalam and refer to IIT and WAPCOS studies that estimate about 184 sq km across 36 villages could be affected.
- Communities argue official exposure estimates understate losses and warn that backwaters threaten major employers such as ITC Paperboards and the Manuguru heavy water plant, so survey findings will be pivotal for binding relief and infrastructure decisions.