TS will lift 3 tmc water from Alampur if AP doesn’t stop Pothireddypadu: KCR
The Chief Minister demanded justice for the State through his detailed explanation of its legitimate shares in both the major rivers
Hyderabad: Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao minced no words in warning neighbouring Andhra Pradesh on Tuesday that it would have to face serious consequences if it went ahead with the construction of illegal projects like Pothyreddypadu.
“The Telangana government will construct a barrage at Alampur-Pedda Marur to lift 3 TMC of water every day for agriculture if the AP government fails to stop these illegal constructions,” the Chief Minister said, making Telangana’s stand on river water sharing unequivocally clear.
Reiterating that the State government would go to any length to protect the interest of its farmers, he said Telangana will not remain a mute spectator to AP’s attempts to continue with the injustice meted out to Telangana in river water usage, usurp its rights and in the process, flouting all regulations as was done in undivided AP.
Chandrashekhar Rao participated in the Apex Council meeting through video-conference convened by Union Jal Shakthi Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat on Tuesday, when he explained in detail with data and facts about Telangana State’s rights on Krishna and Godavari waters and its allocations. AP Chief Minister Y S Jaganmohan Reddy also participated in the meeting.
“The reason for a movement demanding Statehood for Telangana was the injustice meted out to the region in the allocation of water. The new born State has every right to avail its rightful share of inter-State river waters. Telangana will secure all the water that it had lost during the combined State as a legitimate right now,” he asserted.
Stating that it was painful to note that AP was going ahead with the construction of illegal projects on river Krishna despite repeated objections by Telangana and written directions from the Union government, he said: “The Telangana community has been objecting to Pothireddypadu even from the days of Telangana agitation, as it has no ayacut, no clearances or allocations to lift water from Srisailam project. I strongly deplore the continuation of the project even after bifurcation of the State,” he said.
The Chief Minister demanded justice for the State through his detailed explanation of its legitimate shares in both the major rivers. “Immediately after formation of the State on July 14, 2014, we demanded that the Centre refer the inter-State disputes to a Tribunal under Section-3 of the Inter States River Water Disputes Act, 1956. Telangana moved the Supreme Court only after waiting for almost a year for the Centre to respond to its request,” he said, seeking establishment of a Tribunal to resolve pending issues.
The Union Minister, while accepting Telangana’s demand, expressed his inability to move ahead stating that the subject was subjudice. Chandrashekhar responded immediately and agreed to withdraw the case if the Centre declares that it would establish a Tribunal without any further delay. The Chief Minister also demanded that the Jal Shakti ministry chalk out the Terms of Reference for KWDT-II as per section 89 of the AP Reorganisation Act and grant allocations as per its directions.
The Chief Minister brought to the notice of the Council that river water can only be moved within a basin and not outside of it. “The Council must consider the fact that movement of water outside the basin can be done after the needs within the basin are met. The issue of shifting water to another basin can only be examined if surplus water is available,” he pointed out.
The Union Minister agreed to the point raised by Chandrashekhar Rao when he said that both the Ministry and the KRMB had rightly warned AP that it had no right to shift water from one basin to another. He reiterated that none of the ongoing projects in Telangana were new and construction of all these projects began during the rule of combined State. ‘We are building projects on Godavari as per the allocation of 967.94 tmc of water,” he said.
Responding to the demand for submission of Detailed Project Reports ((DPRs), the Chief Minister said there was nothing to hide. “Only because changes have been constantly depending on the way the projects were built, it is taking time to submit the DPRs. Other than that, the State has no objection to submit the reports,” he added.
The Chief Minister reminded AP that it can use all the Godavari water that enters its geographical area as per the GWDT award and if it had any issues, it could submit them before the Tribunal. Shekhawat then advised both the States to send requests so that Godavari Tribunal can be established. The Chief Minister reminded the Ministry that Telangana wrote a letter on August 20, 2020, requesting it to stop AP from going ahead with Pothireddypadu expansion. He objected to the way AP went ahead and called for tenders despite the genuine objections raised by Telangana.
“If AP bulldozes the objections and decides to construct the project, then Telangana, to protect its farmers and their needs for irrigation, will take up a barrage on Krishna near Pedda Maroor just like Maharashtra constructed barrage at Babli to protect the interests of its farmers,” the Chief Minister warned, adding that the State will lift 3 tmc water every day from Krishna with the help of the barrage.
While assuring the Centre that Telangana will cooperate if the other State comes forward to solve disputes amicably, Chandrashekhar Rao suggested that the Centre allocate water and the jurisdictions of the Boards to allow them to function efficiently. Pointing out that the minutes of the first Apex Council meeting that was held four years back were not properly recorded, the Chief Minister said that minutes of the second meeting must be recorded properly both on video and also in print. He said that minutes of the meeting should be released only after the Chairman and both the Chief Ministers sign the documents.
He expressed satisfaction over the decision of the Council to set up a Tribunal under section 3 as suggested by Telangana. “It is an achievement by the Telangana State government as the second Apex Council meeting decided to constitute a Tribunal under Section 3 due to pressure exerted by the Telangana. The matter has been pending for the past six years,” he said.
“If the complaints made by Telangana can be solved by the Tribunal, there will be marked improvement in Telangana’s share in Krishna river waters,” he said. Chief Minister also congratulated all the officials who contributed to strengthen Telangana’s point of view with data.
Telangana State Planning Board Vice Chairman B Vinod Kumar, Chief Secretary Somesh Kumar, Chief Adviser Rajeev Sharma, Principal Secretary Narsing Rao, CMO Secretary Smitha Sabharwal, Irrigation Adviser SK Joshi, Principal Secretary Rajat Kumar, CMO OSD (Irrigation) Sridhar Rao Deshpande, ENCs Muralidhar Rao, Nagender Rao , Nalla Venkateshwarlu, B Hariram and Koteswara Rao participated in the meeting.
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