Telangana won’t surrender water rights even if God stands in the way: Revanth Reddy

Criticises AP’s proposed Polavaram-Banakacherla link project; says Telangana should be allowed to construct its own projects first to fully utilise its allocation of assured and surplus Godavari waters

Hyderabad: Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Wednesday said his government would not compromise on Telangana’s water rights, warning that the State would fight for its rightful share even “if God stands in our way”.

Speaking after a power-point presentation on Krishna and Godavari river waters at Praja Bhavan, Revanth Reddy also alleged that former Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao had allowed Andhra Pradesh to divert Krishna waters. He criticised Andhra Pradesh’s proposed Polavaram-Banakacherla link project, which aims to draw from flood waters, and argued that Telangana had failed to utilise its rightful share of Godavari water over the past decade due to misgovernance. As per tribunal allotments, Telangana is entitled to 968 TMC of Godavari water, while AP has a share of 518 TMC.

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Emphasising that flood waters must be shared on a pro-rata basis according to each State’s entitlement, the Chief Minister said Telangana should be allowed to construct its own projects first to fully utilise its allocation of assured and surplus Godavari waters.

He also pointed out that 20 per cent of Hyderabad’s population hailed from Andhra Pradesh, and yet the city had not received an adequate share of water. “Right from Jurala, we should have taken our share before it reached Srisailam,” he said.

He also warned that Telangana’s hydropower generation was under threat, citing significant losses from Srisailam, Nagarjunasagar, and Pulichintala projects. With peak-hour power costing Rs 10 per unit, the State was not only losing its water share but also its capacity to generate hydel power efficiently. “Our hydel power units are now at risk of turning defunct,” he said.