Agreement with Maha will break the ice: DS

Hyderabad: Dharmapuri Srinivas, Advisor to Telangana government (Inter-State Relations), claimed on Saturday that the State government's proposed pact with Maharashtra government on irrigation projects would resolve decades' old water sharing dispute between the two States.

Addressing a press conference at the State Secretariat here, Srinivas said that Maharashtra and Telangana governments would sign the pact on March 8 on construction of five barrages on Godavari, Pranahita and Penganga. He said the pact would result in construction of five irrigation projects in the next 2-3 years benefitting seven districts in the State.

He said there was a dispute over height of Pranahita-Chevella project. While the erstwhile united Andhra Pradesh government had proposed 152 metres height, the Maharashtra government wanted it to be reduced by four metres. He said the dispute had led to the wastage of nearly 900 TMC water every year. He said Maharashtra was also against the submergence of its nearly 20,000 acres of land.

Srinivas said that Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao had held successful talks with the Maharashtra government and by agreeing to reduce the height by four metres, he resolved a major dispute. He said this would benefit the farmers of both the States. He informed that three barrages would be constructed on Penganga and one each on Pranahita and Godavari rivers.

He hoped that Telangana would become a water surplus State after the signing of pact with Maharashtra.