HYDERABAD: Refuting the charges levelled by Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat on Thursday, Finance Minister T Harish Rao on Friday said that the Centre had failed to refer Telangana’s request to a Tribunal within one year as per Section 4 of the Inter-state River Water Disputes Act, 1956.
The delay in constituting a new Tribunal was on the part of the Central government, Harish alleged.
Speaking to reporters in Siddipet, he said that it was not a four-month dispute as stated by the Jal Shakti Minister. It was in fact a delay of seven years, Harish alleged.
He recalled that 42 days after the formation of Telangana, the State government had requested the Centre on July 14, 2014 to resolve the Krishna river water disputes under Section 3 of the ISRWDA. Section 4 of the Act says that the Centre should resolve the matter within one year, when an aggrieved State requests the Centre to resolve river water disputes. Or the Centre should refer the matter to a Tribunal within one year.
“As the Centre failed to discharge its responsibility, the State government then went to the Supreme Court in 2015, 13 months after its request to the Centre,” explained Harish. “The dispute is not pending since four months as stated by the Jal Shakti Minister. The issue is pending for the last seven years,” Harish said. Harish recalled that when Telangana made a request in 2014, the Jal Shakti Ministry took the Law Ministry’s opinion. The Law Ministry said that it should be referred to a Tribunal as per the Act. Even then, the Centre did not act upon it, he alleged.“Act immediately, constitute a new Tribunal and resolve Krishna disputes between AP and TS,” Harish demanded.