HC clears dismantling of TBM in Veligonda, clearing way for project completion

Vijayawada: With the high court giving the green signal for dismantling of the tunnel boring machine (TBM) stuck in the Veligonda project, the water resources department is gearing up to complete the task of releasing Krishna River waters through the project. The Veligonda project, one of the state’s major irrigation schemes, involved the excavation of twin tunnels through the Nallamala forest to draw Krishna waters to the drought-prone regions of Prakasam, Nellore and Kadapa districts. Works were stalled since TBM got stuck in one of the tunnels.Since the project alignment passes through a wildlife sanctuary, authorities have opted for advanced TBMs rather than conventional blasting methods to comply with environmental and wildlife protection norms. The two TBMs were imported from abroad by the original contractor in 2007 at an estimated cost of around ₹80 crore each. The machines were deployed to excavate the twin tunnels, and over the next 14 years, they played a key role in boring through the rocky terrain of the Nallamala hills.After the excavation of the first tunnel was completed in 2021, the TBM used there was dismantled inside the tunnel itself and its components were transported outside. However, the second TBM remained stranded inside the tunnel. When a new contractor took over the project in 2022, authorities decided against reusing the machine, citing the enormous costs of bringing in foreign experts from Germany, carrying out repairs, and restoring the equipment to working condition. Instead, the remaining tunnel works were executed manually using conventional machinery and manpower.The presence of the giant machine has since become a major obstacle to completing the remaining work in the second tunnel. The issue became more complicated due to a dispute between the state govt and a bank that had financed the purchase of the machine for the previous contractor. While project authorities wanted the machine dismantled, the lending bank and contractor opposed its destruction. They approached the high court and got a stay order, resulting in the stalling of progress.After the NDA returned to power, they worked overtime and got clearance from the high court to dismantle the TBM. The court recently directed that the dispute between the former contractor and the bank be settled separately and emphasised that public interest and project completion should not be delayed.Following the court’s observations, the water resources department has initiated steps to dismantle the machine and remove it from the tunnel. The water resources department had asked the contractor to submit quotations for cutting the TBM into sections and transporting the parts outside. The machine, which is about 115 metres long, will have to be dismantled under the supervision of technical experts.Authorities estimate that the entire process of dismantling and removing the equipment could take around three-and-a-half months. During the dismantling of the TBM in the first tunnel, the process took nearly four-and-a-half months. The state govt is aiming to bring Krishna waters through the Veligonda Project from August. “We are hopeful of completing the canal and releasing water from Veligonda during the current season,” said joint collector and project authority Puli Srinivasulu.