Harish slams govt, says AP stealing Telangana water

Harish Rao (Photo by arrangement)
Hyderabad: Senior BRS leader T. Harish Rao on Friday slammed the state government and irrigation minister N. Uttam Kumar Reddy, saying Telangana had turned into a silent spectator while Andhra Pradesh was taking forward “illegal projects ahead on a war-footing.”
“Due to the negligence of the Chief Minister, irrigation minister, and officials, Telangana is facing the risk of significant losses in water resources. Even as AP is rushing ahead with projects that have no permissions, the Telangana government is not taking any proactive measures,” Harish Rao said.
Harish Rao told a news conference that as per reports, AP was making huge efforts to divert Godavari river waters, while both AP and Karnataka are constructing projects on the Tungabhadra. “AP has tripled the capacity of the Polavaram right canal, enabling the transfer of 200 tmc ft of water from the Godavari to the Penna basin through the Banakacherla cross-regulator without the mandatory approvals,” he said.
Harish Rao said AP CM Chandrababu Naidu had written to Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman seeking funding for the Bankacherla project. “According to reports she is facilitating a `40,000-crore loan from the Asian Development Bank for the project. Why is the Telangana’s government silent on this and has not even written to her objecting to the project?”
He said because of Telangana government’s negligence, AP was going ahead with various projects which in turn will affect major Telangana projects like Sitaramasagar, Sammakkasagar, the third tmc ft allocation for Kaleshwaram, Kalwakurthy, Dindi lift irrigation schemes, and the Nagarjunasagar ayacut area.
“As the opposition, we are prepared to offer constructive suggestions to safeguard Telangana’s water rights. This is not a time for petty politics. It is a time to stand united for Telangana’s future,” Harish Rao said.
( Source : Deccan Chronicle )
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