VIJAYAWADA: Even as the Telangana government has expressed its discontent over the notification of jurisdictions of the Krishna River Management Board (KRMB) and the Godavari River Management Board (GRMB), the Ministry of Jal Shakti (MoJS) said it has defined them as it is determined to implement the provisions of AP Reorganisation Act, 2014 (APRA) in letter and spirit.
The MoJS also revealed that it has begun consultations with the Ministry of Law and Justice (MoL&J) to seek its opinion if the matter of reallocation of Krishna water could be referred to the existing Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal II (KWDT-II) or a new tribunal has to be formed as requested by Telangana.Joint Secretary of MoJS Sanjay Awasthi, in a press conference in New Delhi on Friday, noted that the notifications were issued as per Section 87 of the APRA after addressing the concerns raised by Telangana. He said that the entire administration, regulation, maintenance and operation of the projects in Godavari and Krishna basins listed in Schedule II of the gazette would be done by the respective boards.
“After much deliberation and thorough discussion, we issued the gazette notifications. The respective boards shall now regulate the supply of water and power to AP and TS as per the provisions of APRA. We put this provision as it was our determination to implement the APRA in letter and spirit. A lot of thought, time and effort went into drafting the notifications by the CWC officials, who worked day and night. In fact, more effort went into drafting these notifications than that would usually be made for Parliament bills,” the Joint Secretary said.
When asked if Telangana consent was sought before issuing the notifications, Awasthi said the MoJS intention has always been to notify the jurisdiction as decided in the second apex council meeting.
“Section 87 of the APRA says that the Centre has to do it. We took time to build a consensus. TS had some reservations in 2016 about Godavari water sharing and other issues. In the second apex council meeting, the minutes of which have been circulated a long time ago, it was decided that if we were to receive references or formal representation seeking a new tribunal for the Godavari, it would be considered. No such request has come. To that extent, whatever were the reservations, to begin with, we are taking care of them simultaneously,” he added.
Awasthi also revealed that the MoJS has sought the MoL&J opinion on Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao’s request for referring Krishna water allocation issue either to the existing tribunal or to a new one. “Soon after we received Telangana’s letter in the second week of June that it had filed an application to withdraw its earlier petition in the Supreme Court, we drafted a set of queries and sent to the MoL&J to seek its opinion if the matter between the two States could be referred to the KWDT-II or a new tribunal has to be constituted. The MoL&J sought some background information and documents. The consultation is in process. We don’t know what the MoL&J will be, but whatever it says we will abide by it,” he explained.
It may be recalled that AP Water Resources Secretary J Syamala Rao, on July 6, had written to the MoJS noting that the KWDT-I quota, which was protected by the KWDT-II, can’t be revisited, and urged the ministry to hold a personal hearing with both the States before taking any decision in the matter of reallocation of Krishna water.The MoJS Joint Secretary further noted that through the notifications, the Centre has also clarified what an unapproved irrigation project is.
According to the MoJS, projects which were not approved by the boards or the apex council, those which were not approved by the advisory committee or Central Water Commission, and those approved but whose scope was changed are unapproved projects.When asked why the ministry has taken over seven years to implement the provisions of APRA, the MoJS Joint Secretary said that building consensus took a lot of effort and time as it is related to a “super-sensitive” issue.
“The Government of India was put in a position where it has to play the role of an umpire. A lot of effort went into trying to build a consensus on big and small issues. For example, even small issue like the shifting of KRMB headquarters to AP is something that needs to be dealt with keeping the feelings and aspirations of all stakeholders in mind.Seven years may seem long, but it was essential to bring all stakeholders on the same page, where they could sit and talk for mutual benefit,” the MoJS Joint Secretary remarked.