Hyderabad: An interim committee appointed by the governor had decided two days back to release 10 TMC of water from Nagarjuna Sagar for drinking purposes to the Krishna delta between June 25 and July 9. However, the file pertaining to the release of the water was put on hold by the Telangana government. Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao himself is of the opinion that water from the projects on Krishna and Godavari cannot be released without the consent of both the states.
Officials of the AP irrigation department, however, contended that the interim committee was an autonomous body and its decisions would have to be honoured by both Telangana and AP. “This committee was constituted when the state was undivided. In the meeting held in March with the Governor and senior officials, it was decided to release 37 TMC ft of water from Srisailam reservoir to Nagarjunasagar. This 10 TMC ft is part of that 37 TMC ft. What the interim committee decided was only the dates, i.e. June 25 and July 9 for release of the water.
This committee is the de facto Krishna River Management Board. Neither of the two state governments shall have any authority on changing water allocations except the Krishna Water Board that is yet to be constituted in full scale by the government. By all means, the interim committee will take decisions until the Board comes into force,” said a senior official in the AP irrigation department.
This committee comprises principal secretaries, engineers in chiefs and other officials from both Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. “The panel was constituted before the Appointed Day and care was taken to even issue formal orders constituting the committee on May 30 itself. The committee will discharge its duties strictly in adherence to the rules laid down in the AP Reorganisation Act,” said AP irrigation department principal secretary Mr Adityanath Das.
However, Telangana irrigation department principal secretary B. Aravinda Reddy said that officials from both the states were allocated on the interim committee to ensure that they looked after the interests of their respective states. “The minutes of the meeting have been sent to the Telangana government and the file is under consideration,” he said. According to the Bachawat award, the total allocation of water to the united Andhra Pradesh is 2,201 TMC ft from the rivers of Krishna and Godavari, with 75 per cent of dependable yield. Krishna contributes 811 TMC ft, while 1,480 TMC ft comes from Godavari.
The respective Water Boards for Krishna and Godavari have to be constituted in full scale within 60 days from the Appointed Day i.e. June 2. The Boards will then take over the allocation and supply of water from the dams, reservoirs and other sources on the two rivers. Until then, the interim committee will have to take decisions as per the AP Reorganisation Act, said a senior official.
