Welfare association urges KRMB Chairman to shift headquarters to Vijayawada for fair water allocation in Krishna Basin

The KRMB should allocate Andhra Pradesh rightful share of water, 512 tmcft out of 811 tmcft, as per Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal-1, to protect the existing ayacut, says the Welfare Association of Water Users and Ayacutdars
| Photo Credit: File photo K.V.S. Giri

The Welfare Association of Water Users and Ayacutdars has urged the  Chairman of Krishna River Management Board(KRMB), to take necessary steps to shift the headquarters of KRMB to Vijayawada.

In a letter dated Monday, A.V. Gopala Krishna Rao, former member of the State Apex Committee, Water Resources Department, and others said that the ayacut covered under Nagarjunasagar Left Canal (NSLC) in Zone II and Zone III is 1.56 lakh acres and 2.11 lakh acres respectively. The KRMB in its order dated December 5, 2024 has allocated 12.0 tmcft of water under NSLC to A.P. region for rabi 2024-25. The above water releases scheduled from December 2024 to January 2025 to the standing crops of mango, tobacco, jowar, cotton, Chillies, black gram, green gram, oil palm etc. However, only about 2.9 tmcft of water was released up to December 2024. 

The Telangana State is drawing more than 120 tmcft of water for their power generation out of 299 tmcft in the Krishna Basin below Srisailam and Nagarjunasagar projects. Due to the above actions of Telangana, the yield of existing ayacut in Andhra Pradesh is badly affected. The KRMB should allocate Andhra Pradesh rightful share of water, 512 tmcft out of 811 tmcft, as per Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal-1 (KWDT-1) to protect the existing ayacut under Andhra Pradesh projects, they said.

“We have also submitted several representations to shift the headquarters of KRMB to Vijayawada for monitoring the various Krishna projects located in both States by the officials of KRMB,” they said adding,  “We have constantly represented on the above issues to the KRMB authority to examine and do justice to save ayacut under Zone-II & III under NSLC. However, no positive actions are observed in the field.”