No room for disputes, unity is key: Nimmala

Vijayawada: Reiterating that the proposed Polavaram–Nallamala Sagar link project will not cause any loss to Telangana, water resources minister Nimmala Ramanaidu on Monday called for cooperation between the two Telugu states to ensure shared progress and development.

The minister was responding after Telangana withdrew its petition in the Supreme Court concerning the project, following observations made by the Chief Justice of India. Welcoming the development in a statement, Ramanaidu said Andhra Pradesh has consistently maintained that the project poses no harm to Telangana and urged the neighbouring state to shed misconceptions and extend its cooperation.

He said both states have, from the beginning, wished for each other’s well-being and development. Of the nearly 3,000 TMC feet Godavari water that flows wastefully into the sea every year, Andhra Pradesh proposes to utilise only about 200 TMC feet, he clarified. “There is no question of loss to Telangana,” he asserted.

Recalling Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu’s vision, Ramanaidu said the Chief Minister has always advocated that the Telugu states should grow together in a spirit of brotherhood.

Expressing concern over the wastage of precious water resources, the Minister noted that over the past 50 years, around 1,53,000 TMC feet of floodwater from the Godavari has gone waste into the sea. This year alone, about 4,600 TMC feet was lost, he added.

Drawing a parallel with the Kaleshwaram project, Ramanaidu said that just as permission was granted for the project upstream on the Godavari after the bifurcation of the state, similar approval should be given for the Polavaram–Nallamala Sagar project downstream. He described Andhra Pradesh’s demand as reasonable, justified and in line with the principles of natural justice.

“If floodwater at Polavaram is not utilised by Andhra Pradesh, it will ultimately merge into the sea as saline water. In such a situation, there can be no question of any loss to Telangana,” he said.

He also recalled that Andhra Pradesh had extended cooperation when Telangana took up the Kaleshwaram project, acknowledging the availability of abundant Godavari water.

Ramanaidu expressed confidence that once the Polavaram–Nallamala Sagar project is completed and Andhra Pradesh’s needs are met, Telangana too would stand to benefit from the initiative.