Krishna water disputes tribunal: Anil Kumar Goyal cross-examined

Anil Kumar Goyal, a key witness for Andhra Pradesh, who was cross-examined by senior advocate V. Ravinder Rao representing Telangana before the Krishna Waters Disputes Tribunal on Friday,

Hyderabad: Anil Kumar Goyal, a key witness for Andhra Pradesh, who was cross-examined by senior advocate V. Ravinder Rao representing Telangana before the Krishna Waters Disputes Tribunal on Friday, admitted his unawareness regarding the abandonment of the Vykuntapuram pumping scheme a decade ago. Despite this, 2 TMC of water was re-allocated for the scheme as part of the 385.83 TMC of projected requirements.

Goyal confirmed that he had considered both the protected utilization and the reallocation while preparing the data in his affidavit. He acknowledged that both the Guntur Channel and Vykuntapuram Pumping Scheme are located downstream of the Pulichintala reservoir, with an intermediate yield of 53 TMC between the Pulichintala reservoir and Prakasham Barrage. However, he noted that the 6 TMC requirement for these schemes could not be solely met from the downstream yield due to varying seasonal requirements.

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During the cross-examination, Goyal admitted he had not studied the project reports or cropping patterns in detail and based his answers on discussions with Andhra Pradesh officials. He also discussed the utilization patterns and allocations for other projects like Jurala and KC Canal.

He highlighted that drinking water requirements take precedence over all other uses and are prioritized even in deficit years. He mentioned that the supplementation of water to KC Canal by Srisailam reservoir is only considered in extreme deficit years. He also agreed that about 95% of the utilization under the Krishna Delta System is in areas outside the basin.