HYDERABAD: Officials of the Ministry of Jal Shakti are likely to conduct a virtual meeting with chairpersons of river management boards in a day or two to review the progress of implementation of the gazette notification. According to sources, officials of the Boards informed Jal Shakti officials that no GOs were issued by AP or Telangana to hand over Peddavagu project on Godavari. Though AP issued a GO for handing over some of the projects on Krishna river, it was a conditional GO, while Telangana is buying time to issue the GO. In light of this, Jal Shakti officials are expected to give certain directions to chairpersons of Krishna River Management Board and Godavari River Management Board, sources said.
Meeting over check dams held
Meanwhile, officials of Telangana Irrigation Department conducted a meeting on the construction of check-dams. The meeting assumed significance as reports of inferior quality of construction of check-dams at some places in the State have surfaced. Meanwhile, the inter-State Irrigation officials are preparing a powerpoint presentation to be given at the proposed meeting of National Water Development Agency (NWDA) to be held in Hyderabad on October 29 on Godavari-Cauvery river linking.
Telangana has been opposing the same for several years now. It demanded that the Centre should first divert surplus waters from Mahanadi river to Godavari. Later, if surplus waters were available in Godavari, the same should be diverted to Cauvery, Telangana has informed the NWDA. Officials will once again present the same view in the meeting on October 29. The annual general body meeting of NWDA will be held virtually on October 28 , in which Chief Ministers of nine States are expected to participate.