VIJAYAWADA: The state government, which had earlier written to the Union Water Resources ministry to relocate the headquarters of Krishna River Management Board (KRMB) to Vijayawada, has now informed the board that the office would now be sanctioned in Visakhapatnam, as decided by the government. While the decision seems to be prompted in view of the decision to relocate the executive seat to Visakhapatnam, water users associations, civic and irrigation organisations raised strong objections to the move.
Though the state government on multiple occasions had written to the Union ministry seeking that the board’s office be moved to Vijayawada, as per AP Reorganisation Act, 2014, a letter was sent to the member secretary of KRMB on December 25 by then special chief secretary (water resources) and now chief secretary, Aditya Nath Das, stating that the government has decided to have the board’s office in Vizag.
Another letter shot off reportedly on January 1 by the chief secretary intimated the authorities the same. It may be recalled that the Union ministry, after the second Apex Council meeting on October 6, said that the headquarters would be shifted to AP.
The state government’s latest decision received criticism from various associations which questioned the logic behind establishing the management board related to Krishna river in a far-off location, Vizag. President of AP State Water Users Associations Federation Alla Venkata Gopala Krishna Rao demanded that the board be established in Vijayawada. The federation also sent a representation to Union Jal Shakti ministry on Sunday appealing that the KRMB be established in Vijayawada itself.
“What is the point in establishing KRMB office about 400 kms away from the last project in Krishna basin?" he asked.
T Lakshminarayana, social activist and political analyst, also demanded that the decision be scrapped. Instead, the government should write a letter asking for the establishment of KRMB headquarters in Kurnool. In the past, Rayalaseema Saguneeti Sadhana Samithi president Bojja Dasaratha Rami Reddy had also demanded that the office be setup in Kurnool, which is the gateway of Krishna River to AP and where the major project (Srisailam) is located.
However, the state water resources officials claimed that setting up of KRMB headquarters in Vizag would not create any issues.
“The office is more of an administrative setup for monitoring the river and its management. But the management per se would be done by our officials in the respective regions. So, there need not be any apprehensions that there would be a disconnect between KRMB and Krishna basin areas,” an official observed.