Telangana fails to tap Krishna inflows as Andhra Pradesh draws aggressively from Srisailam

Despite heavy inflows into the Krishna basin, Telangana’s irrigation projects remain underutilised, with Andhra Pradesh drawing large volumes from Srisailam. Officials blame tampered telemetry and a delayed crop season for the State’s low water use this monsoon

Hyderabad: Driven by heavy rainfall in the State and upstream catchment areas, Telangana’s major irrigation projects in the Krishna basin are witnessing significant inflows. However, Andhra Pradesh’s aggressive drawals are depriving downstream Telangana projects of their due share.

The Srisailam reservoir, now nearing full capacity for the second time in a month, continues to receive over 1.10 lakh cusecs. Nearly half of this is being utilised by Andhra Pradesh, with the drawals at the Pothireddypadu head regulator alone around 40,000 cusecs, translating to over three TMCs a day, often for use beyond the basin.

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A senior irrigation official from Telangana said Andhra Pradesh’s drawal figures are misleading, with telemetry systems at Srisailam outlets allegedly tampered with. “The drawals at Pothireddypadu rise considerably at night and are reduced before morning readings are taken,” the official said.

Since June 1, Srisailam has received nearly 400 TMCs of inflows. However, less than half of that has reached the downstream Nagarjuna Sagar Project (NSP). Telangana, which could not tap the early flood flows, has now begun phased releases to its reservoirs. NSP has received cumulative inflows of 170 TMCs so far this water year (June 1 to July 25).

Of this, Telangana has drawn less than five TMCs, mainly for drinking water needs, via the NSP Left Canal. Irrigation drawals, which commenced recently, stand at around 4,000 cusecs.

The Priyadarshini Jurala Project (PJP) recorded cumulative inflows of 300 TMCs in the past 55 days, of which Telangana’s usage remains below five percent. Officials attribute the low utilisation to a delayed crop season.

In the Godavari basin, projects such as Sriram Sagar (SRSP) and Sripada Yellampalli have seen no substantial inflows so far. Sriram Sagar received 2,600 cusecs on Friday, while Yellampalli is getting around 4,000 cusecs. Inflows at Mid Manair were around 1,000 cusecs, and Nizamsagar reported 863 cusecs.

The Medigadda barrage, part of the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme, is receiving over 2.6 lakh cusecs. However, the flood flow is being let off, with all 85 gates kept open.