Telangana Irrigation Minister Uttam Kumar Reddy has written a letter to the Center protesting against the Godavari- Banakacharla project undertaken by AP. In this regard, he wrote a letter to Jal Shakti Minister CR Patil on the 13th of this month, requesting that the AP pre-feasibility report be rejected. He stated in the letter that the DPR should be stopped from being submitted and that AP should not move forward, including calling tenders.
On the other hand, Uttam Kumar Reddy rejected the allegations of former minister and BRS leader Harish Rao on the Banakacharla project. He explained that the Congress government acted swiftly and decisively in the matter of the Godavari-Banakacharla project.
He recalled that immediately after the AP CM wrote a letter to the Center for funds, he wrote a letter to the Central Jal Shakti and Finance Ministers on January 22 and expressed his objections. He clarified that the Congress party has not remained silent and has been moving forward legally from the beginning.
He alleged that Harish Rao’s claims are baseless and misleading. He criticized the BRS government for damaging Telangana’s river water rights and limiting Telangana’s water allocation in the Krishna River to only 299 TMC. He reminded that during the BRS regime, water was diverted in large quantities from Muchumarri and Mallya.
He explained that the BRS government did not consult the Apex Council when the tenders for Rayalaseema lift irrigation were finalized. He alleged that KCR was watching the situation while Andhra Pradesh was diverting 3 TMC of water daily, and that KCR allowed AP to exploit Telangana’s water with Jagan’s understanding.
Meanwhile, former minister Harish Rao said that Telangana is being dealt with irreparable injustice due to the Polavaram-Banakacherla link project planned by the AP government. He lamented that AP CM Chandrababu Naidu, who has written letters opposing several projects including Kaleshwaram, has now accused them of trying to build dams without any permission.
AP, which has already filed a complaint with the Godavari Tribunal over water rights, he said that it has hatched a plan to complete the project and get 200 TMC as its right before it is formed.