The Hindu : Conditional offer to T.N. on Telugu Ganga water

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Jan 12, 2003

Southern States

Southern States - Andhra Pradesh

Conditional offer to T.N. on Telugu Ganga water

By Our Special Correspondent

HYDERABAD JAN. 11. Andhra Pradesh has given a positive reponse to a distress plea made by the Tamil Nadu Government for the release of Telugu Ganga waters for Chennai by offering to lift the dead storage, if need be, from the Kandaleru reservoir in Nellore district for the purpose.

The offer has been made subject to the condition that Tamil Nadu bears the entire cost of such lifting. Intimation of the Tamil Nadu Government's stand on this is awaited here. Pending a final decision on the condition laid down, Tamil Nadu, however, mentioned about Chennai's dire need for drinking water in June-July and sought regular Telugu Ganga releases by that time at least out of the first inflows in Srisailam.

The issue figured at the 39th Liaison Committee meeting of the Telugu Ganga at the A.P Secretariat on Friday attended by the Tamil Nadu Chief Secretary, M.P. Lakshmi Pranesh, who came here heading an official team, and her A.P. counterpart, Sathi Nair. The gesture from Andhra came in spite of the problems back home due to poor reservoir levels this year, the lowest in two or three decades.

The meeting advised the experts committee of the inter-State canal consisting of representatives from both sides, to frame draft operational rules governing releases to Chennai city hereafter. It was decided to hold the next Liaison Committee meeting in July next.

According to K. Raju, Irrigation Secretary incharge of Telugu Ganga Project, the Tamil Nadu team had commended the efforts made by A.P. in completing certain critical components of the project, especially those relevant to supply to Chennai, except for small stretches in Chinnamukkpalli area.

For enhancing storage and discharge capacity of the canal, it was decided to straightaway initiate the process for land acquisition with Rs. 30 crores provided by Andhra Pradesh to increase the impounding in Somasila, one of the balancing reservoirs of the canal, to 50 tmcft during the next season from the present 30 tmcft.

The land acquisition would be made at 13 villages, all in Cuddapah district, to enable Somasila storage up to 322 ft contour.

The meeting resolved to undertake improvement works on the stretch of the canal from Somasila to Kandaleru for achieving a discharge capacity of 9,000 cusecs compared to 4,000 cusecs now.

The Chief Secretaries placed on record the appreciation by the respective governments, of the generosity with which the Satya Sai Trust of Sri Satya Sai Baba of Puttaparthi has commenced the lining work of the portion of the canal from Kandaleru to Poondi, a length of 150 km, with Rs. 200 crores to permanently halt leakages and seepages. K. Kondal Rao, an engineer-expert, was present representing the Satya Sai Trust.

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