HYDERABAD: The Krishna River Management Board (KRMB) meeting scheduled to be held on August 27 will discuss the working arrangement for Andhra Pradesh and Telangana’s sharing of the river water for the current water year.
Telangana Special Chief Secretary Rajat Kumar has already requested the KRMB for a 50:50 ad hoc water sharing ratio between the two States for the year 2021-22.
“In the meeting conducted by Additional Secretary of Minister for Water Resources in Delhi in June, 2015, it was decided that AP would get 512.04 tmcft and TS 298.96 tmcft. In the subsequent meetings of the KRMB held in 2017 and 2018, the States’ water sharing ratio was decided at 66:34, excluding its utilisation under minor irrigation, diversion of Godavari waters and evaporation losses. Now, TS has requested for a 50:50 ratio,” the agenda item of the KRMB stated. Besides this, 13 other items were included in the agenda.
The agenda also included the diversion of Godavari water by Andhra Pradesh. Telangana raised the issue with the KRMB and Ministry of Water Resources, seeking an additional share of 45 tmcft for the State in the Krishna, subsequent to the clearance of the Polavaram project by the Central Water Commission, as per the terms of the Bachawat Tribunal Award.
The other items on the agenda are: filling up of vacant posts, providing adequate funds to the Board, carry over of non-utilised share of water by Telangana to the next water year, utilisation of water during surplus years, regulation of surplus water during the monsoon, jurisdiction of the Board, power generation issues, minor irrigation projects and shifting of the KRMB office from Hyderabad to Visakhapatnam.
Organisational structure
In another letter, the KRMB wanted both the States to furnish their views on the organisational structure of the Board, as per the gazette notification issued by the Jal Shakti Ministry. Meanwhile, in a letter to the KRMB Chairman, Telangana engineer-in-chief C Muralidhar requested the Board to provide a copy of the detailed project report (DPR) of Rayalaseema Lift Scheme at the earliest to Telangana so that it could offer its views. The AP has already submitted the DPR to the KRMB.