HYDERABAD: Alleging “deep-rooted corruption” in shifting the water intake point of the Palamuru–Rangareddy Lift Irrigation Scheme (PRLIS) from Jurala to Srisailam, Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Thursday asserted that his government would expose errors and injustice caused to Telangana by the previous BRS regime in irrigation projects.
On Thursday, Irrigation Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy made a PowerPoint presentation on Krishna water issues to Ministers, Congress MLAs and other leaders. The chief minister was also present.
Alleging that there was no Cabinet approval for shifting the intake point, the chief minister said that an investigation was required to ascertain for whose benefit the source was changed and where “thousands of crores” were spent. He said there would be no mistake in “hanging” former chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao and Harish Rao for what he termed injustice to Telangana in water matters, adding that in Middle East countries “they would have been killed by stoning”.
Inviting KCR to attend the Assembly, Revanth asserted that he was prepared to discuss Krishna water issues and the future course of action. “KCR should come to the Assembly and explain how to go forward and the action plan. Or he can give a letter with suggestions if he does not want to attend the Assembly,” he said.
Cong leaders took on their own govt for the sake of TG: CM
The chief minister appealed to leaders who had actively participated in the Telangana movement to urge KCR, through press conferences, to attend the House. He alleged that KCR was staying away from the Assembly because the government would table documents and expose him.
Addressing the gathering, Revanth said BRS leaders were, in his view, selectively criticising the government’s objectives and spreading incorrect information. He said Telangana was formed for water rights and recalled that several Congress leaders, particularly P Janardhan Reddy, had fought for a fair share of Krishna waters for Telangana during undivided Andhra Pradesh, even opposing their own government. He said the present government was correcting mistakes committed by the previous BRS regime to secure Telangana’s rights.
‘State getting less Krishna water due to KCR, Harish’
Explaining the background, he said the Brijesh Kumar Tribunal had allocated 811 tmcft to undivided Andhra Pradesh, 794 tmcft to Karnataka and 585 tmcft to Maharashtra from the Krishna river. Of the allocation to undivided Andhra Pradesh, the N Kiran Kumar Reddy government concluded that 512 tmcft was being utilised by the Andhra region and 299 tmcft by the Telangana region.
After the formation of Telangana, when a proposal to share water between the two states on this basis was placed before the Apex Council, KCR and Harish Rao agreed to it and signed, he said. This arrangement was extended year after year, and in 2020 KCR agreed to continue it until the Tribunal delivered its final verdict. He alleged that Andhra Pradesh had since delayed the Tribunal proceedings.
Revanth said that under international water law principles, allocation should be proportionate. As Telangana has a 71% catchment area and Andhra Pradesh 29%, he said Telangana should receive 555 tmcft. He said a second argument was based on the Tribunal’s observation of 1,005 tmcft water availability in the Krishna basin in undivided Andhra Pradesh, which was stayed by the Supreme Court. If availability was 1,005 tmcft, Telangana should get 763 tmcft and Andhra Pradesh 285 tmcft, the chief minister said. He claimed these arguments had unsettled the Andhra Pradesh government and said former chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy had written to the present chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu expressing concern over Telangana’s stand.
Stating that after the Congress came to power the BRS lost elections, including panchayat polls, the chief minister alleged that KCR had resorted to spreading falsehoods for political survival. “The lies uttered by BRS leaders are 24-carat pure, meaning that there is not even an iota of truth involved,” Revanth said.
‘BRS replicated PRLIS corruption in Kaleshwaram’
On PRLIS, he said the previous BRS government shifted the intake point from Jurala to Srisailam, increasing the project cost from Rs 32,200 crore to Rs 84,000 crore. He said the scope was expanded from three stages to five stages and the number of pumps increased from 22 to 37. Alleging that pumps and lift systems were central to corruption under the previous regime, he claimed similar practices were followed in the Kaleshwaram project.
He said no detailed project report (DPR) was prepared for PRLIS until 2022, alleging this was to avoid scrutiny. He recalled that an individual had approached the National Green Tribunal stating that works were being carried out without prior environmental clearance, following which the NGT stayed the project.
The BRS government, he said, later filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court stating that PRLIS was a drinking water project, not an irrigation project, and that 7.15 tmcft was sufficient. As a result, the project came to a standstill. He alleged that this classification was used to facilitate payments to pump and lift companies.
The chief minister further alleged that due to decisions taken by KCR, Andhra Pradesh was diverting Krishna waters. He said Andhra Pradesh was utilising about 13.5 tmcft per day, while Telangana had infrastructure to utilise only 0.25 tmcft per day.
‘State stands to get Rs 50K cr financial aid’
Explaining the request made to the Union government for permission to utilise 45 tmcft for PRLIS, Revanth said the state had sought initial allocation by adjusting minor irrigation requirements by treating them as a single cluster. Such permission, he said, would enable the state to seek financial assistance from the Union government under various schemes, estimated at about `50,000 crore. Approval would also allow the state to raise bank loans at interest rates of around 7.25%, he added.