Hyderabad: The Andhra Pradesh government on Wednesday filed a petition before the Supreme Court against Telangana on the ongoing Krishna water row, called the latter’s actions ‘unconstitutional’.
The petition has primarily sought the apex court to direct the Telangana government to notify jurisdiction as per the 2014 act; strike down the June 28, 2021, order passed by the Telangana government as unjust and illegal; and have Andhra Pradesh take control of the common reservoirs—i.e. Srisailam, Nagarjunasagar and also Pulichintala Reservoir along with all their outlets.
According to a report by Bar and Bench, the Andhra Pradesh government alleged in the petition that Telangana has been denying them their legitimate share of water for drinking and irrigation purposes.
The plea stated that in the Srisailam Dam project, the reservoir’s quantity has seriously depleted on account of the use of water from the generation of power in Telangana.
“This has caused immense hardship for people of State of Andhra Pradesh as availability of water has been seriously prejudiced by depletion in Srisailam Dam project as well as other projects such as the Nagarjuna Sagar Project and the Pulichintala Project,” the plea added.
Andhra Pradesh government requested Telangana to stop the same but it was not complied with, Bar and Bench reported. It contended that the actions of the Telangana government are unconstitutional and in violation of the right to life of people.
Besides, the government also submitted to the court that Telangana is not following decisions taken in the Apex Council constituted under the Andhra Pradesh Reorganization Act, 2014 and directions of Krishna River Management Board (KRMB) constituted under the 2014 Act and directions of the Government of India.
“More significantly, State of Telangana is clearly in violation of a binding Award, popularly known as “Bachwat Award” made on 31.05.1976 and express provisions of the 2014 Act, whereby State of Andhra Pradesh was bifurcated into Telangana and Andhra Pradesh,” the petition said.
Power generation at Pulichintala stopped
Meanwhile, as the row between the Telugu states ceases to be cooled down, Power production was stopped at the Dr KL Rao Sagar Pulichintala Project in Telangana’s Suryapet on Monday, 12 days after the exercise first began on June 29.
Pulichintala became one of the central points of water stress, with the Andhra Pradesh government stating that protocols for water utilization in the reservoir mandate sufficient storage and water should be used only when the season coincides with agricultural practices in the Krishna delta region.
The state’s power department had earlier termed the power generation practice as ‘illegal’.
For Andhra Pradesh, Pulichintala stabilizes irrigation needs for 13 lakh acres under Krishna delta spread in Guntur, Krishna, West Godavari and Prakasam districts.