T wants changes in minutes of Godavari Board meeting

Hyderabad: Expressing its unhappiness over the draft minutes of the
Godavari River Management Board
(GRMB) meeting held last month, where Telangana's opinions and remarks were not properly recorded, the Telangana govt has written a letter to GRMB chairman AK Pradhan requesting modifications in the minutes of the meeting, especially regarding the "
VIP reference
".Telangana irrigation engineer-in-chief G Anil Kumar wrote a letter to the GRMB chairman a couple of days ago, urging modifications in the draft minutes of the meeting of the GRMB held on April 7.
The Telangana govt objected to the way the GRMB meeting was convened and stated that the points raised by Telangana through the presentation were not recorded."The meeting was convened without seeking a convenient date and time from the Admin or technical member(s) of the states. The member secretary (MS) or chairman of the board cannot convene meeting dates unilaterally without notice of the members. Consent of board members is needed to avoid frequent rescheduling," the ENC said.It also stated that any important information received by GRMB as a VIP reference pertaining to a state should be shared with the counter state without any delay. "As per the APRA Act, the Board comprises representatives from both states as members (two from each state), and it is prudent that all matters referred to the board shall be instantly brought to the notice of member states by the member secretary," the letter added. The Telangana govt was referring to the VIP reference by the AP govt through the ministry of jal shakti without providing any details to Telangana.The irrigation department head also referred to the issue of the complaint raised by the employees against an officer of the GRMB.

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

Business Standard

3 days ago

• Business Standard

T'gana CM to meet Union Jal Shakti Minister, discuss river-linking project

Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy will meet Union Jal Shakti Minister C R Patil in Delhi on Thursday to convey the state's objections to the proposed Polavaram (Godavari)-Banakacharla river linking project by neighbouring Andhra Pradesh. The CM, who left for Delhi on Thursday morning, is also expected to meet AICC leaders and other dignitaries in the national capital, official sources said. The Polavaram-Banakacharla link project is aimed at diverting surplus Godavari water to the drought-hit regions of Andhra Pradesh, a move Telangana argues is detrimental to its water rights. Reddy, accompanied by state Irrigation Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy, held a meeting on Wednesday with MPs from all parties to gather views on finalising the state's strategy to oppose the project. Later, speaking to reporters, Revanth Reddy said his government is in the first stage of employing the traditional approach of 'saam, daan, bhed, dand' (conciliation, concession, division and force) to challenge the project through political and legal channels. The CM has said the state government had swiftly complained to the Godavari River Management Board (GRMB) and the Union Minister C R Patil when Naidu mooted the Banakacharla project. Responding to opposition BRS' criticism that he remained silent while Andhra Pradesh "took away" Godavari water, Revanth Reddy said it was former CM Chandrasekhar Rao who, during a 2016 meeting of the two state chief ministers in Delhi, first proposed utilising the 3,000 TMC of Godavari water flowing into the sea. "The foundation stone was laid that day. The foundation for the idea of providing water to Rayalaseema (in Andhra Pradesh) by transferring 3,000 TMC Godavari water to Krishna basin was laid that day. This is record of the minutes of that meeting," he said. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu had earlier said the Polavaram (Godavari)-Banakacherla project is aimed at taking surplus Godavari waters to the drought-hit regions in the state. Naidu highlighted that Telangana need not worry as only excess water from the Godavari river will be utilised, which otherwise would drain into the sea.

Hans India

07-06-2025

• Hans India

TG govt amping up fight against AP's Banakacharla move: Uttam

Hyderabad: State Irrigation Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy has said that the Telangana Government was intensifying its fight against Andhra Pradesh's proposed Godavari-Banakacharla Link Scheme and was determined to protect Telangana's water rights. The Minister said that he had written multiple letters to the Centre, exposing serious violations by Andhra Pradesh and demanding immediate intervention. Andhra Pradesh had failed to obtain technical clearances from the Central Water Commission (CWC) and from the Godavari River Management Board (GRMB), Krishna River Management Board (KRMB) and the Apex Council, as mandated under the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act (APRA) 2014. No project on inter-state rivers can proceed without these approvals. Andhra Pradesh is brazenly bypassing all statutory mechanisms, he added. Andhra Pradesh misused Sections 46(2) and 46(3) of the APRA 2014 to seek funds from the Union Finance Ministry under the backward regions development clause, Uttam said in an information interaction with the media here on Friday. These sections cannot override Part IX of the Act, which deals with inter-state river water management, requiring technical clearance, inter-state consultations, and Apex Council approval before any project proceeds. Andhra Pradesh had neither shared any proposal with the Telangana government nor provided any DPR or plans for scrutiny by the relevant boards. He noted that despite Andhra Pradesh's multiple letters to the Union Finance Ministry and the Ministry of Jal Shakti seeking funds, no DPR had been sent, and the ministries had merely forwarded Andhra Pradesh's letters to technical bodies like the GRMB, KRMB, and the Polavaram Project Authority (PPA) for comments. This is not due process. It's an attempt to mislead the Centre and push the project without scrutiny. The previous BRS government failed to safeguard Telangana's interests. During the united Andhra Pradesh era, Telangana's rightful share was 724 tmcft, but the BRS government signed agreements that reduced Telangana's share to 299 tmcft while allocating 512 tmcft to Andhra Pradesh. This betrayal laid the groundwork for the current situation. 'They are acting like Goebbels Rao, repeating lies to cover up their betrayal. Even Goebbels himself would be shocked at the level of false propaganda they are spreading', he claimed.

Hans India

03-06-2025

• Hans India

Telangana not to accept Andhra's Godavari-Banakacherla link project

Hyderabad: The Telangana government will not accept the Andhra Pradesh government's proposed Godavari-Banakacherla link project under any circumstances, Irrigation Minister N. Uttam Kumar Reddy said on Tuesday. He made it clear that Telangana is against the project and will never accept it. Talking to media persons, the minister disputed the claim by the Andhra Pradesh leaders that they will use water going to waste into the sea. Uttam Kumar Reddy said all efforts were being made to stop the Godavari-Banakacherla project. The Telangana government has written letters to the Godavari River Management Board (GRMB) and Union Jal Shakti Minister C.R. Patil. He said that he directly spoke to the Union Minister to discuss the issue and urged him to stop the project. "We have conveyed our objections and we will respond at an appropriate time," he said. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, during his separate meetings with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitaraman and Jal Shakti Minister Patil on May 23, submitted a proposal seeking the Centre's project for the Polavaram-Banakalcherla link project. The project aims to divert surplus water from the Godavari River to water-scarce areas in south-central Andhra Pradesh. It will use lift irrigation and tunnels to connect the regions in three phases. The Chief Minister said that the project would benefit millions in drought-hit areas and serve as a model for river linking across India. The Detailed Project Report is expected this month. Naidu stated that the Polavaram–Banakacharla link project, costing Rs 80,000 crore, will divert 200 TMC of water without affecting any other states. "Telangana too is building projects on the Godavari. Over the past 100 years, 2,000 TMC of water flowed into the sea. Our plan is to redirect 200 TMC of this surplus to drought-prone areas through this project, to be initiated upon Central approval," he said. In April, Telangana Irrigation officials had opposed the project at the GRMB meeting. Irrigation Secretary Rahul Bojja and other officials presented strong arguments before the GRMB against AP for taking up the Godavari-Banakacherla project without approvals and for violating Tribunal orders. The officials told GRMB that, as per media reports, the G-B link scheme is a major project proposed with an estimated cost of Rs 80,112 crore. The plan involves diverting more than 200 tmcft from the Godavari River at Polavaram to Rayalaseema through the Bollapalli reservoir and Banakacherla head regulator. The proposal seeks to interlink the Godavari, Krishna and Penna rivers by expanding the Polavaram Reservoir Head Works against the Godavari Water Disputes Tribunal Award.