HYDERABAD: Irrigation Department officials from Telangana asked the Krishna River Management Board (KRMB) to restrain Andhra Pradesh from proceeding ahead with the expansion of the Galeru Nagari Sujala Sravanthi (GNSS).
In a letter on Thursday, the Telangana engineer-in-chief C Muralidhar said that despite the two letters by Telangana in June and September to stop the expansion of the GNSS, Andhra Pradesh was adding new components to it without any appraisal by the KRMB and approval of the Apex Council.
The AP government accorded administrative approval for “improvements, widening and providing lining to GNSS main canal up to 56 km to increase the discharge to meet the requirement of the lift scheme” for an amount of Rs 305.70 crore, he pointed out.
“Further, the AP [government] also accorded administrative approval for the construction of lift irrigation scheme to lift 150 cusecs of water from GNSS main canal to fill the tanks for an amount of Rs 56.83 crore,” Muralidhar informed the KRMB.
He said that the GNSS draws water from Pothireddypadu head regulator, SRMC and cross regulator at Banakacherla. However, Pothireddypadu head regulator was approved for withdrawal of only 34 tmcft of water and the maximum capacity through Pothireddypadu and SRMC was only 11,150 cusecs during flood flows through old four gates, he said.
“Importantly, Andhra Pradesh did not plead for the allocation of water out of dependable flows to the GNSS project under Section 89 of the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act proceedings before Brijesh Kumar Tribunal and Telangana is contesting the GNSS project before the Tribunal,” Muralidhar said.