Opposition, analysts smell political ploy behind fresh water wars between Telugu states

The sudden escalation of the water wars between Telangana and Andhra Pradesh is being termed by the opposition and political analysts as a ploy by the chief ministers of the neighbouring states for political gains.

The Telangana government, seven years after the carving out of the state from erstwhile undivided Andhra Pradesh, is demanding an equal share in Krishna River waters and vows to fight on legal forums and water tribunals to ensure that.

After the formation of the new state, Telangana had in 2015 given its consent to share the Krishna waters at 66:34, with the larger portion going to Andhra Pradesh.

According to Telangana BJP president Bandi Sanjay, by deploying police at reservoirs on interstate borders, chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao was trying to instigate regional sentiments to gain in the Huzurabad bypoll where former TRS health minister Etela Rajender is now contesting as the BJP nominee.

In Andhra, telling chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy that he must protect the lower riparian state’s rights as per the Bachawat Tribunal award, TDP president N Chandrababu Naidu said Reddy was “just using gimmicks to divert the attention of the public from his government’s growing unpopularity, unemployment problem, wholesale corruption and dissatisfied youth”.

The war of words over water between the two Telugu-speaking states escalated over the last couple of weeks, after Telangana ordered its hydroelectric units to work at full capacity using Krishna River waters at reservoirs along the interstate borders.

Andhra alleged that Telangana was producing hydel power using Krishna waters that were currently at below the minimum drawdown levels and against the water distribution prescribed by the Bachawat Tribunal.

Both states have approached the union government seeking its intervention against the “illegal” irrigation projects being built by each other. They have also moved legal forums to stall the projects of each other.

Pointing out that Andhra Pradesh and Telangana had agreed in 2015 to the 66:34 ratio, and that it was being followed for the last six years, social activist Thunga Lakshminarayana, convener of the Forum for Integrated Development of Andhra Pradesh, said Telangana was raising the issue for political gains.

Raising doubts over the timing of the new disputes, political analyst Manchala Srinivas Rao questions the Telangana government’s earlier decision to withdraw its case demanding a new water tribunal and years of silence over alleged “illegal” projects of Andhra in the Rayalaseema region.