Handing Over of Projects to KRMB: Take all-party delegation to Centre, KCR tells Revanth

Nalgonda: BRS chief K Chandrasekhar Rao, who addressed the first public meeting at Nalgonda after his recent hip replacement surgery, gave a call to the people to get ready for a prolonged jung to ensure that the state does not lose its rights on river waters.

Launching a blistering attack on the Congress government in Telangana, KCR on Tuesday accused it of "handing over" projects on the Krishna river to the Krishna River Management Board (KRMB) and failing to ensure uninterrupted power supply and support to farmers.

He demanded that Chief Minister Revanth Reddy lead an all-party delegation to the Centre and mount pressure on the Brijesh Kumar Tribunal to address the issue of Telangana share in Krishna waters. Making light of the visit of legislators to the Medigadda barrage led by Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, KCR said the Congress has no knowledge of irrigation.

The former CM alleged that the ruling Congress was trying to defame the previous BRS government. He said there are 250-300 pillars. The Kaleshwaram project is not a toy. It consists of three barrages on Godavari river. 200 km-long tunnels, 1,500 km canal, 19 substations and 20 reservoirs. Is this not all Kaleshwaram project?

He said some two-three pillars went down (partially). How many times did this not happen? Did this not happen in the Nagarjuna Sagar project?" he asked. If there is any problem in the barrage, it should be rectified and water should be supplied to farmers, he added. The BRS delegation would also visit Medigadda barrage to counter the allegations leveled against him by the Congress government, he added.

KCR said, “This public meeting is not a political meeting. It is meant to create awareness and alert the state and Central governments on water sharing between the two Telugu states."

“I will not sit like a cat but will fight like a tiger on water sharing.”

KCR said they would question the government as the main Opposition “at every step” if the people are troubled over water, electricity and others. “I am warning the state government. Power supply should be restored the way the BRS government supplied,” he said.

KCR criticized the NDA government at the Centre for the delay in entrusting the task of allocation of water to the state, to the water tribunal. The Union government had referred water allocation to the tribunal before the recent Assembly polls, he said. Instead of fighting for state’s share in river water before the tribunal, the Congress government “handed over Krishna waters to the Krishna River Management Board (KRMB),” he claimed.

Referring to the resolution adopted in the Assembly on Monday that the state government shall not hand over control of projects common to Telangana and Andhra Pradesh on Krishna river to the KRMB unless the conditions put forth by the state are fulfilled, KCR claimed that the resolution was ‘inadequate’. “The resolution was not good. They talked about drinking water. But power production was not incorporated in the resolution. They don’t have understanding about river waters. They should have consulted him or other BRS leaders on this issue,” he said.

KCR exuded confidence that the BRS would come back to power with “double speed”. “Should we (BRS) also behave the same way (when we come to power and try to defame the previous government)?” he wondered.