Andhra Pradesh and Telangana agree to hand over Nagarjuna Sagar, Srisailam project to KRMB

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Committee on water-sharing

Since the bifurcation of the states in 2014, both Andhra Pradesh and Telangana have been at loggerheads over the sharing of water from the Krishna river.

The newly-formed state of Telangana advocates for a 50:50 river water sharing arrangement, while Andhra Pradesh denies this.

It cites the AP Reorganisation Act of 2014, which allocates the state around 512 thousand million cubic feet (tmcft) out of the total 811 tmcft.

The final decision on water-sharing between the states will be made based on the recommendations of a three-member committee.

According to Telangana’s Engineer-in-Chief C Muralidhar, the KRBM will issue water-sharing orders based on the committee’s recommendations, and the staff from both Andhra Pradesh and Telangana will implement it as they will be working under the KRBM from now.

Muralidhar clarified that the projects will not be completely handed over to the KRBM; rather, they will only oversee operations, while the respective states will manage maintenance.

“This agreement aims to halt disagreements arising from daily operations, as Andhra Pradesh alleges that Telangana is not releasing water according to issued orders,” he said.

Andhra Pradesh Engineer-in-Chief Narayana Reddy reaffirmed Muralidhar’s statements.

“The KRBM will ensure the projects run smoothly without hindrances or partiality, overseeing operations while respective states handle maintenance,” he said.

He added that it was decided at the KRMB meeting that Andhra Pradesh would receive 2 tmcft from the left main canal and 3 tmcft from the right main canal in March, with 5 tmcft already allocated to it for April.

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Interstate water row

This agreement follows the release of 3,000 cusecs (cubic feet per second) of water by Andhra Pradesh irrigation officials on the intervening night of 29-30 November last year, from the Nagarjuna Sagar dam, which was under the control of Telangana.

The action coincided with the polling day for the Telangana Assembly elections.

Andhra Pradesh Irrigation Minister Ambati Rambabu accused the Telangana government of preventing the state from using its rightful share of Krishna waters.

“We have a right to 66 percent of the Krishna waters. But the Telangana government is creating hurdles,” he said.

The minister said that the Andhra Pradesh government had no desire to use even one drop of Telangana’s share of water.

He accused the Telangana government of the habit of switching on their hydel stations on the left-bank canal of the Srisailam Project because they were stationed in their territory.

However, according to Telangana officials, the Andhra Pradesh police did not seek any clearance from the Telangana government before releasing the water.

Nagarjuna Sagar dam, built across the Krishna, is under the control of the Telangana government while the control of the Srisailam project is with the Andhra Pradesh government.

Meanwhile, the Vijayapuri Town police in the Nalgonda district of Telangana registered a case against the Andhra Pradesh police on a complaint lodged by Police Sub-Inspector S Vijay Kumar of the Telangana Special Protection Force (TSPF) unit at Nagarjuna Sagar.

In his complaint, he said that about 500 armed police personnel bulldozed the gate, trespassed into the dam, and laid barbed-wire fencing, taking control of the entire stretch of the dam from the 13th gate to the 26th gate and the right canal’s head regulator.