HYDERABAD: TRS president K Chandrasekhara Rao today demanded that the Central Water Commission (CWC) should constitute a monitoring committee with Chief Engineers from all the states to resolve the river watersharing disputes among various states.
Responding to Krishna Tribunal judgment on Almatti height and the present row over ‘illegal’ construction of Babli, Rao suggested that like Tungabhadra dam, the CWC should also constitute monitoring committees for both Krishna and Godavari with Chief Engineers from respective states to solve the disputes in sharing river waters.
He suggested the state government to urge the Centre for CWC monitoring committee for both Krishna and Godavari. `None can deny the levels at various dams and the state could demand for its rightful share in waters, once the monitoring committee is constituted,’’ TRS chief explained.
On the TDP’s argument that it was only fighting against the Babli, Rao recalled that it was first TRS which knocked the doors of Supreme Court on Babli issue. Later, it was Congress MP Madhu Yashki who filed another petition, he said.
TDP TO INTENSIFY AGITATION: Expressing serious concern over the Krishna Water Tribunal’s judgment, the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) has decided to intensify its agitation.
Speaking to Express over phone, party MLA Devineni Uma Maheswara Rao said that today’s judgment was a fallout of ineffective arguments presented by the state government before the Tribunal. He recalled that Brijesh Kumar Tribunal was constituted in 2004 to hear the arguments on Almatti. Augments were commenced in 2006. But, the State government filed interlocutory application (IA) only in March this year. The lethargic attitude of the government resulted in huge loss to the State, Uma Maheswara Rao alleged.
He said that farmers in all the three regions in the state would suffer a lot due to the increase in the height of Almatti.
Reacting to Major Irrigation Minister Ponnala Lakshmaiah’s comment that there would be no loss to the state due to the Tribunal’s judgment, Uma Maheswara Rao demanded that the minister should resign first owning moral responsibility.
Ponnala failed to protect the interests of the state in both Babli and Almatti issues, the TDP MLA alleged.
When TDP organised a massive dharna on Prakasam Barrage, the Congress leaders laughed it off. Now, the state was paying a heavy price for the ineffective arguments by the state, he alleged. He said that all the MLAs and MLCs of Krishna district would meet on Friday and chalk out future action plan. “We will go to the people and explain how the three regions will suffer due to the apathy of the state government in presenting the arguments before the Tribunal,’’ Uma Maheswara Rao said.
He added that once TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu returns from his trip, the TDP would finalise an action plan on Almatti and Babli.
The Almatti dam, built over river Krishna in Karnataka, is part of the Upper Krishna project (UKP) in the Krishna river valley. Almatti is on the border of Bijapur and Bagalkot districts.
Dispute: The dispute over the dam among the three riparian states -- AP, Karnataka and Maharashtra -- dates back to the 60s. The Government of India had then constituted the Krishna Waters Disputes Tribunal in 1969 to sort out the dispute. In 1973, the tribunal gave its award over distribution of waters between the riparian states.
Environmentalists angle: The Almatti dam, which the tribunal called the “carry-over reservoir” has gates of more than 15.5 m as against the originally envisaged three-metre gates. The World Bank stopped aid for the project twice for poor rehabilitation facilities.
Award: The Bachawat, which has now come up for review after its expiry, allocated 700 tmcft of water to Karnataka, 800 tmcft to AP and 560 tmcft to Maharasthra.
Karnataka’s plan: The neighbouring state intends to raise the level of Almatti to 524 metres. AP fears that once Karnataka raises the level to capture the excess waters of the river, they will not reach the command areas of Krishna valley dams in AP including Srisailam. Nagarjunasagar, Jurala and Krishna barrage -- thereby jeopardising the economy of AP’s rice bowl. Karnataka, on the other hand, has been arguing that it has every right to to increase the height to 524 metres according to the sanctions accorded by the Planning Commission.