Krishna sharing tops council agenda
Sharing of Krishna river waters, a contentious issue between Telangana state and Andhra Pradesh, would be on top of the agenda during the Apex Council meeting on October 6, the second since September 16, 2016, under the provisions of AP Reorganisation Act ,2014. Telangana state is objecting to the Rayalaseema lift irrigation scheme (RLIS) that takes waters to Nellore through Rayalaseema from the Pothireddypadu head regulator. It has a carrying capacity of 44,000 cusecs and the AP government floated tenders for the project and finalised packages at a cost of `23,000 crore.
Affirming the stand taken by AP, the Centre has said at the National Green Tribunal hearings that the RLIS does not require a fresh environmental clearance as it was not a new project and does not involve any addition in culturable command area.
The Union ministry of environment, forests and climate change has also said that the RLIS was neither an irrigation project nor was a power-generation component involved. Therefore, it does not require an environmental impact assessment (EIA) notification.
Irrigation engineers are preparing arguments for presentation before the Council. Engineer-in-Chief (ENC) of Andhra Pradesh government Narayana Reddy said, “our arguments are sound and we will put up a bright show at the meeting.” Narayana Reddy told Deccan Chronicle, “technically we have a robust argument and our engineers are fine-tuning it. Telangana state’s objections are rebuttable and lack solid ground.”
On Telangana state Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao seeking management of the Srisailam dam that falls in Andhra Pradesh, he said “We cannot speak on political statements. That demand itself shows that they have no arguable ground on the projects being taken up by us on using the Krishna river waters”
Union Minister for Jal Shakti Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, in a letter dated August 7, had asked the Chief Ministers of both states not to go ahead with projects on Krishna and Godavari rivers, which are being objected to.
The seven projects objected to by Andhra Pradesh include Kaleshwaram, Godavari lift irrigation scheme phase 3, Seetarama, Tupakulagudem, Telangana Drinking Water Supply Project, barrages on the Lower Penganga river, and the Ramappa Lake to Pakhal Lake diversion.