Sunday, Jun 15, 2003
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Andhra Pradesh
By Our Special Correspondent
The meeting, which was attended by the Congress, the BJP, the CPI(M), the Telangana Rashtra Samithi and the MIM, apart from the Telugu Desam, adopted a unanimous view that State interests were at the stake and that the work should be stopped forthwith by whatever means available. An action programme, going beyond the usual correspondence, was finalised. The Major Irrigation Minister, Kadiam Srihari, who announced the outcome later to the press, said as the first step an all-party delegation led by the Chief Minister himself would meet the Prime Minister on June 20 or 21 in Delhi before his departure for China, and heads of major political parties, including the Congress.
An official delegation, led by the Principal Secretary of Irrigation, J. Harinarayan, would explain the position
The situation would be reviewed at an all-party meeting again on June 18 or 19.
The Congress, which was represented by M. V. Mysoora Reddy and J. C. Diwakar Reddy, dissociated itself from the proposal to meet leaders of political parties, including Sonia Gandhi, saying "what is the fun in meeting them when Constitutional bodies are existing. This is against federalism.''
Asked about this, Mr. Srihari said they did not raise the issue at the meeting and by saying so after the meeting, they perhaps wanted to avoid meeting with their party president for their own reasons.
The common view taken by the Chief Minister and the Opposition was that Karnataka had gone ahead with Paragodu violating both 1892 and 1933 agreements between erstwhile Madras-Mysore states, and that it had conceived Paragodu as irrigation project and implementing accordingly but when questioned by Andhra Pradesh, it was portraying it as one meant for drinking water for about 88 villages.
The "game" was too revealing because
The Opposition also identified itself with the Government regarding the Upper Thunga Project, which was under construction by Karnataka, and said: "The Government should fight it out.''
They wanted the official delegation to impress upon the CWC member the need to extend the inspection to this project.
Mr. Srihari and these leaders contended that this project was allotted only 12.24 tmcft by the Bachawat Tribunal but the present construction was for utilisation of 40 tmcft for about 4 lakh acres with 356-km-long canal, which was dug.
Opposition leaders said if concession was to be given to a drinking water project it should go first to the projects existing in Andhra Pradesh like that of the Satyasai Foundation and the Rajiv Gandhi Technology Mission, which were serving 700 villages in the drought-prone Anantapur district.
"State interests are certainly threatened,'' they asserted.
N. Indrasena Reddy and K. Haribabu of the BJP called Karnataka action "unjust and unfair."
Mr. Mysoora Reddy and Mr. Diwakar Reddy, however, criticised the Government for "waking up now."
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