Harish Rao questions Revanth Reddy’s claims on Tungabhadra
BRS leader T Harish Rao criticised Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy’s celebrations over the replacement of Tungabhadra dam gates, arguing that Telangana’s core water issues remain unaddressed. He said the State continues to be deprived of its rightful Krishna River share under the Rajolibanda Diversion Scheme.
Hyderabad: BRS Legislature Party deputy leader T Harish Rao questioned Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy’s celebrations over the replacement of gates at the Tungabhadra dam, asking him whether the exercise would actually help Telangana secure its rightful share of Krishna River waters.
He asserted that the real issue was not the replacement of gates but ensuring Telangana received its allocated 15.9 TMCft water through the Rajolibanda Diversion Scheme (RDS).
In a series of questions directed at the Chief Minister, Harish Rao sought to know whether Revanth Reddy had obtained concrete assurances from Andhra Pradesh on the permanent closure of RDS sluices on its side and repairs to the RDS weir.
He asked whether Karnataka had given assurance on immediate repair and regular maintenance of the RDS canal in its territory.
“These are the primary reasons why Telangana has been consistently deprived of its allocated share of water under the RDS,” he said.
Harish Rao argued that the Tungabhadra gates had functioned for nearly 75 years and that Telangana had never received more than about 5 TMCft through the RDS despite its entitlement. “How will gate replacement alone ensure Telangana gets its rightful 15.90 TMCft?” he asked.
The former Irrigation Minister also criticised the acceptance of the system losses concept in Krishna water accounting and contended that such a provision was not recognised under the first Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal-I (KWDT-I) award.
“The system loss concept is beyond the scope of the Tribunal award and cannot be used to reduce Telangana’s legitimate share,” he said.
He said Andhra Pradesh continued to utilise around 39 TMCft of water at Sunkesula for the KC Canal and was diverting additional 10 TMCft river water to the Right Bank High Level Canal (RBHLC) and Right Bank Low Level Canal (RBLLC) through an understanding with Karnataka. He asked whether the Chief Minister had raised concerns over this injustice to Telangana.
Harish Rao also expressed concern over the proposed Naveli reservoir in Karnataka and the Gundrevula project in Andhra Pradesh.
He said the two projects together, were planned to utilise around 55 TMCft, posing a threat to Telangana’s rightful share in Krishna River waters. He asked whether Revanth Reddy secured safeguards for Telangana in this regard.
Stating that Telangana’s core water issues remained unresolved, he said celebrations over the Tungabhadra gate replacement amounted to political publicity unless firm assurances were obtained on the State’s rightful share of Krishna waters.
