Uttam sets deadline for Rs 813-crore payout to farmers

Reddy was reviewing the progress of land acquisition and compensation disbursal with the District Collectors through a video conference.

Hyderabad: Telangana Irrigation and Civil Supplies Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy on Monday, September 21, asked district collectors to disburse Rs 813 crore to farmers affected by land acquisition.

The irrigation officials were also asked to ensure that funds already released for land acquisition and Rehabilitation and Resettlement (R&R) reach affected farmers on a war footing, warning that money should not remain parked in government accounts while irrigation projects are held up.

Reviewing the progress of land acquisition and compensation disbursal with the District Collectors through a video conference, Reddy expressed concern that about Rs 813 crore was still pending for disbursement in the accounts of District Collectors, Revenue Divisional Officers, and Special Deputy Collectors.

Officials informed Reddy that since April 1, tokens worth about Rs 3,101 crore had been submitted and around Rs 2,504 crore had been released towards land acquisition and R&R. Of the amount currently pending at the district level, about Rs 502 crore was with Land Acquisition Officers and another Rs 311 crore with Collectors.

Reddy said the accumulation of funds without them reaching land losers was a matter of concern. He asked the Collectors to personally intervene and speed up negotiations to facilitate awards and payments.

“If the money has been released, it must reach the land-losing farmers. If for any genuine reason it cannot be disbursed, explain the reason and return the money instead of keeping it idle,” he said.

The irrigation minister recalled that Chief Minister Revanth Reddy had committed Rs 6,000 crore during 2026 for land acquisition, R&R and forest-related requirements of irrigation projects with a view to ensuring quick completion of the irrigation projects. He said these funds were being arranged outside the regular irrigation budget so that a lack of money would not delay priority projects.

He made it clear that tokens should be raised only after awards were passed and cases were actually ready for payment. At the same time, he stressed that acquisition must follow a humane and reasonable approach towards farmers. “The government does not want to be unfair to farmers while taking away their land. Compensation should, within the legal framework and due process, be as close as reasonably possible to prevailing market values,” he said.

In cases where compensation remained unpaid after an award, he instructed officials to pay the statutory interest wherever applicable. In cases involving court or title disputes, the Minister directed officials to compile all pending cases so that they could be taken up with the Advocate General for focused legal action.

The Minister examined district-wise bottlenecks in Nalgonda, Yadadri-Bhongir, Narayanpet, Siddipet, Vikarabad, Jagtial and Hanumakonda, among others. In Nalgonda district, Uttam reviewed delays concerning Chintapalli reservoir, Pendlipaka balancing reservoir, Udayasamudram and Nellikallu. He stressed the urgency of completing acquisition for Pendlipakala, pointing out that the reservoir was crucial to deriving benefits from the SLBC tunnel once it was completed.

“If the tunnel is completed but land acquisition for the balancing reservoir remains unfinished, the investment cannot yield the intended benefit,” he cautioned.

The Collectors were asked to compress timelines, rather than treating two or three weeks as routine administrative processing time.

The minister said land acquisition had become critical because several irrigation projects were substantially completed and their benefits were being held up mainly by pending distributary canals, connecting works and small stretches requiring acquisition.