Andhra-Telangana water dispute: Centre to form panel to resolve issues; KTR slams Revanth Reddy over Delhi meeting

Hyderabad: After the meeting in Delhi hosted by the union Jal Shakthi ministry with chief ministers of both the Telugu states on Wednesday, political sparks flew thick on Thursday. The Centre had decided to establish a technical committee comprising senior officials and experts from Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, and the central government to study outstanding concerns between the two Telugu states and propose viable solutions for equitable and efficient water sharing.

The decision emerged from the meeting hosted by the Union Jal Shakti Ministry on Wednesday in Delhi, where Chief Ministers A Revanth Reddy of Telangana and N Chandrababu Naidu of Andhra Pradesh participated alongside their respective Water Resources Ministers and senior government officials.

BRS working president and former minister K T Rama Rao launched a scathing attack on the Congress government, alleging that Chief Minister Revanth Reddy had surrendered during the Delhi meeting.

"While water theft has persisted for six decades, yesterday Chief Minister Revanth Reddy went covertly to Delhi and capitulated. How did Revanth Reddy, who previously refused to discuss Banakacherla, end up attending the meeting? He has become subservient to Chandrababu Naidu," said KTR.

He further accused Naidu of historically blocking permissions for the Kaleshwaram and Sitaram projects, emphasising that former Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao (KCR) remains committed to protecting Telangana's water rights. He warned that if the Congress government fails to change its stance on Banakacharla, the BRS party stands ready to launch another agitation.

"The central government operates under Naidu's influence," he alleged, adding that even a Congress MLA had observed that governance appears to follow Naidu's covert directives.

Interestingly, while the Banakacherla project planned by Andhra Pradesh had turned out to be a new bone of contention between both the Telugu states, Union Minister of State for Home Affairs, Bandi Sanjay Kumar, expressed dissatisfaction over both states making unilateral statements on the Banakacharla issue.

“I welcome the remarks of Chief Minister Revanth Reddy that the Centre is playing the role of an elder brother in this issue. For decades, water disputes have existed between the two states, and some political parties are trying to exploit these issues for political gain. That is precisely why the Centre took on the role of a facilitator to help resolve them. It was surprising that after the meeting yesterday, both Chief Ministers and ministers from the two states expressed differing opinions on Banakacherla.

The Chief Ministers must clarify what actually transpired during the meeting. The Centre had officially released a statement yesterday. In reality, both CMs had gone to the meeting with separate, individual agendas. For the Centre, both states are equal. The meeting was convened with the intention of achieving a peaceful resolution, and that itself is a success for the Centre,” said Sanjay in Karimnagar.

He added that the Centre has no hidden agenda. Its sole aim is to resolve the disputes between the two states. After reviewing the agendas of both states, the Centre, with a commitment to ensure justice to both, formed a committee of senior officials and experts to look into the listed issues, he added and urged both state governments to immediately appear before this committee and present their objections or concerns.

“Even though the Centre took such a positive step, it's disappointing that neither Chief Minister expressed any gratitude. I leave it to their wisdom and maturity.”

He further criticised the BRS party’s accusations on the water disputes, calling them bizarre.

“Previously, the BRS government colluded with the then Andhra Pradesh government and mortgaged Telangana’s share of Krishna waters to AP. The current government seems to be following the same path. That’s why both these parties are now creating false controversies over Banakacharla to derive political benefits. The people of Telangana have not gained anything from the governance of either party,” he added.