The Andhra Pradesh government will convene an all-party meeting to discuss the illegal construction of irrigation projects by Maharashtra and Karnataka on Krishna, Godavari, Bhima and Tungabhadra rivers.
Telugu Desam, Telangana Rashtra Samithi and the two Left parties expressed concern over the illegal constructions undertaken by the neighbouring states and charged the Congress government in Andhra for not doing enough to protect the state's interests in river waters.
Replying to a debate in the State Assembly during question hour on Friday, Major Irrigation Minister Ponnala Lakshmaiah said that the state government had taken up the matter with the Union Ministry of Water Resources, the Central Water Commission and the Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal.
The Minister accused both Karnataka and Maharashtra of constructing projects unauthorisedly on these rivers to the detriment of Andhra.
Such unauthorised projects in Karnataka included several projects on Tungabhadra river and the oversized Almatti dam on the Krishna, apart from several weirs and barrages across Bhima in violation of the earlier Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal (Bachawat) Award. Across Manjira, a tributary of Godavari, Karnataka also constructed several weirs and barrages which affected the inflows into Singur particularly in lean years.
So far as Maharashtra was concerned, it was constructing several illegal projects on Krishna river, besides the augmentation of storage capacity of Ujjani dam.
Across river Godavari, Maharashtra has taken up construction of a barrage at Babhali and also proposed another 11 barrags below Paithan to take water in excess of 60 TMC -over and above the entitled share as per the Godavari Water Disputes Tribunal Award.
This would affect inflows into Sriramsagar project in Andhra. Maharashtra also constructed a minor irrigation tank at Yedur upstream of Kaulasnala project in Andhra.
The Andhra government has brought all these illegal constructions to the notice of the Union government several times and the issue was raised in Parliament also. These issues have been filed before present Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal for adjudication and redressal so far as Krishna river water was concerned.
An all-party delegation from Andhra, led by the major irrigation minister met the Union Minister for Water Resources Priyaranjan Das Munshi.
Maharashtra had been subsequently directed by the Union government to keep further construction of Babhali barrage on hold, pending resolution of the matter between the two states.
Regarding Godavari, inter-state meetings among Andhra and Maharashtra officials on Babhali and other barrages were taking place under the aegis of the Central Water Commission.