It is a well-known fact that the bifurcation of United Andhra Pradesh would create water disputes between the two Telugu states. While this continues to be a thorn, the latest allegations by AP Water Resources Minister Devineni Umamaheswara Rao that the Telangana government is constructing 16 irrigation projects illegally on Krishna and Godavari basins may escalate the bitterness between the two states.
Speaking at the AP Legislative Assembly, he said that “eight projects on the Krishna basin and nine projects in Godavari basin are constructed illegally by Telangana government.” Naming each of these projects, he gave out the details of the storage capacity of these projects. The Palamuru-Rangareddy Lift Irrigation Scheme, Dindi LIS, enhancement of Kalwakurty, Bhakta Ramdas LIS, Thummilla LIS, water Grid project, enhancement of SLBC as well as enhancement to Nettampadu LIS are the ones being constructed on Krishna basin illegally, he stated.
Meanwhile, the prestigious Kaleswaram Project, GLIS phase-III, Tupakulagudem (Kanthanapalli), Sita Rama LIS, water grid project, Rajapet (Bhimkund), Chanaka Korta project, Pimprad-Parsoda, Ramappa Lake to Pakkala Lake are the ones on Godavari basin, being constructed illegally.
Adding to this, he said that the Telangana government is also violating the provisions of AP Reorganisation Act, 2014 and also is going against the Central Water Commission Regulations. It has also appealed to the CWC and Krishna River Management Board and Godavari River Management Board to call for a meeting and sort out these issues. While these allegations seem politics, they are definitely going to cause more bitterness between already strained relations between the two Telugu states.
