HYDERABAD: While officials of the Krishna River Management Board (KRMB) are gearing up to implement the gazette notification of the Ministry of Jal Shakti (MoJS), the Telangana government shot off another letter to the KRMB urging it to follow an ad hoc water sharing ratio of 50:50 between AP and TS from the water year 2021-22 till finalisation of Brijesh Kumar Tribunal’s decision as the State is still facing distress due to insufficient water.
Irrigation Engineer-in-Chief C Muralidhar recalled that “as the tribunal did not make project-wise specific allocation or prepare any operation protocol for common projects, an understanding with AP is practical to share the water on ad hoc ratio year to year basis, pending finalisation of the KWDT-II Award.”
He recalled that in the 12th board meeting, it was agreed to share water in the ratio of 34:66 (TS:AP) for one year, excluding utilisation under minor irrigation, diversion of Godavari water from Pattiseema LIS and evaporation losses for the year 2020-21.
“Based on parameters such as catchment area, cultivable area, drought prone area and population, Telangana is entitled for 70.8:29.2 (TS:AP) ratio in Krishna water. Telangana has already put forth the demand for 771 tmcft allocation of water before the KWDT-II,” he said. He also pointed out that both the tribunals had emphasised that priority be given to in-basin areas. “The Brijesh Kumar Tribunal is adjudicating the matter under Section 89 of the AP Reorganisation Act,” he said.
“It is pertinent to note that AP has ‘large unapproved and unauthorised’ diversion capability of 4.7 tmcft per day from Srisailam and over 300 tmcft of storage in Pennar and other basins, where it can store such ‘diverted’ water from Krishna. Telangana has only 0.28 tmcft per day, that too through lifting,” he said.