Telangana govt urges Centre to stall Banakacharla project proposed by AP govt

Hyderabad/ New Delhi, June 19 (UNI) Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy and Irrigation Minister Capt. N Uttam Kumar Reddy today urged the Union government to stall the Godavari-Banakacharla Project proposed by the Andhra Pradesh government, which they said is against natural justice and the interests of Telangana.
The CM reiterated to Union Jal Shakti Minister CR Patil that they will not compromise on the interests of Telangana under any circumstances and will try to resolve the issue amicably through all platforms.
The CM made it clear to the Union Minister that if the Centre's response was not favorable, the state government will approach the Supreme Court.
Revanth and Uttam, who who met Jal Shakti Minister Patil in New Delhi, appealed to him to reject the pre-feasibility report (PFR) of the project proposed by the Andhra Pradesh government and to "ensure that justice and truth prevail". Besides the Union Minister, they also met Secretary of the Union ministry Debashree Mukherjee and other senior officials at Shramshakti Bhavan in the national capital today.
Briefing the Jal Shakti Minister, the Chief Minister and his colleague Minister said that the Banakacharla project was against the interests of Telangana state.
They explained how the Andhra Pradesh government was taking up the project in contravention of the Godavari Water Disputes Tribunal-1980 (GWDT) and the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014.
The Chief Minister brought to the attention of the Union Minister the various concerns raised by the people and farmers of Telangana over the way the Union Finance Ministry and the Environment Ministry are handling the Banakacharla project approvals.
The CM informed CR Patil that AP claimed that it proposed the Banakacharla project based on flood waters of Godavari, but the truth is that there is no mention of flood waters or surplus waters in the GWDT-1980.
According to the 2014 AP Reorganization Act, if a new project is to be built in any state, it must first be discussed and approved by the Godavari River Management Board, Central Water Commission (CWC) and the Apex Council headed by the Jal Shakti Minister and the Chief Ministers of the two states, CM Revanth Reddy pointed out.
"Andhra Pradesh violated all these important issues and was proceeding with efforts to construct the project," he complained. The AP government's claim that it undertook the project based on flood waters was strongly objectionable because there was no rule-basis for such an argument, the CM added.
Taking serious note of all these issues, Chief Minister Revanth and Minister Uttam appealed to the Union minister to immediately intervene in this matter and stop all works being undertaken as part of the Banakacharla project.
Further, the CM and irrigation minister informed CR Patil that AP has undertaken Purushothapatnam, Venkatanagaram, Pattiseema and Chintalapudi lift irrigation projects under Polavaram by using flood waters without obtaining permission from the Technical Advisory Board in the CWC.
CM Revanth Reddy explained to Union minister Patil about the change of the Polavaram designs as per the GDWT -1980 regulations and works being carried out in violation of the environmental clearances despite objections being raised.
The CM requested the Union Minister that the Central government should pay attention to ensuring that no violation of regulations takes place while constructing the Polavaram national project.
The CM also told CR Patil that the Telangana government was ready for talks to discuss lifting of water to Penna basin by linking Icchampally–Nagarjuna Sagar, which will be funded by the Centre, instead of Polavaram–Banakacharla, if Andhra Pradesh really believes there is any flood water in river Godavari.
The CM also pleaded with the Union Minister to ensure that the Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal-2 verdict is issued soon.
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