While one wants Telangana to halt new projects, the other alleges under-reporting on water utilised

Two States neighbouring Telangana are trying to pressure the Centre to resolve problems they are facing from the new State.

While Karnataka has asked the Centre to intervene and stop Telangana from building projects on Krishna river, Andhra Pradesh has requested the Union government to give control to the Krishna River Management Board (KRMB) to prevent the neighbouring Telugu State from “under-reporting” the water it is utilising.

The Karnataka government has asked the Centre to stop Telangana from taking up the Palamuru-Rangareddy and the Nakkalagandi Lift Irrigation Schemes that will draw water from the foreshore of Srisailam Reservoir on the Krishna. Karnataka Water Resources Department Principal Secretary Rakesh Singh, in a letter to his counterpart at the Centre, wrote that Telangana did not have the “right to take up the irrigation projects” (Palamuru-Rangareddy and Nakkalagandi).

Mr. Singh said even the apex council constituted under Section 84 (3)(ii) of the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014, was not “competent to plan or approve these projects”.

Karnataka rejected the Centre’s suggestion to approach the Krishna River Management Board (KRMB) with their grievance saying that the powers of the river management board were applicable only to Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.

Karnataka was making necessary preparations to challenge the construction of these two Lift Irrigations Schemes in the apex court, sources said. Karnataka wrote four letters to the Union government asking it to stop Telangana from taking up the project.

A.P. problem

Andhra Pradesh Water Resources engineers are alleging that Telangana drew 50 tmcft from Jurala last year, and this year another 37 tmcft was unaccounted for till now. This was happening as the KRMB had no powers or monitoring mechanism.

Andhra Pradesh engineers allege that T.S. was resorting to unauthorised diversion of water to the Rajolibanda Diversion Scheme, Koilsagar and Nettampadu reservoirs.

While the Bhachawat Tribunal awarded 17.1 tmcft for erstwhile Andhra Pradesh, which is the present Telangana, much more water was being drawn, the AP engineers allege.

This was easy to establish from comparing the readings of Central Water Commission (CWC) gauges above and below Jurala project, the engineers say.

Telangana has been scuttling all attempts by Andhra Pradesh. to expedite the process of KRMB getting jurisdiction (control) over reservoirs that are common to Telenagna and Andhra Pradesh, the engineers have been alleging.