Telangana Urges KRMB to Halt Andhra’s ‘Illegal’ Water Withdrawal

**Telangana Urges KRMB to Stop Andhra Pradesh’s ‘Illegal’ Water Withdrawal from Krishna River**  

Hyderabad: The Telangana government has urged the Krishna River Management Board (KRMB) to prevent Andhra Pradesh from drawing water from the Srisailam and Nagarjuna Sagar reservoirs. Accusing Andhra Pradesh of exceeding its allocated quota from the Krishna River, Telangana has formally written to the KRMB, demanding an immediate halt to further withdrawals.  

Following the postponement of a scheduled KRMB meeting on Friday, Telangana’s Principal Secretary for Irrigation & CAD, Rahul Bojja, along with Engineer-in-Chief Anil Kumar and Nagarjuna Sagar Chief Engineer Ajay Kumar, met KRMB Chairman Atul Jain. They pressed for the immediate cessation of Andhra Pradesh’s water draws from the common reservoirs. Bojja handed over an official letter emphasizing that Andhra Pradesh had already exceeded its entitlement, as per KRMB records, and should not be allowed to extract more water.  

The letter also noted that Telangana had submitted an indent for 107 TMC of water to meet drinking and irrigation needs until May 2025. It stressed the urgency of securing water to sustain Rabi crops cultivated across 13 lakh acres in the Krishna basin and to supply nearly two crore people in Hyderabad, Nalgonda, Mahbubnagar, and Khammam.  

“In light of Andhra Pradesh seeking to postpone today’s meeting to February 24, we once again urge the KRMB to stop all withdrawals by Andhra Pradesh from Srisailam and Nagarjuna Sagar until the issue is addressed,” the letter added.  

### **Uttam Kumar Reddy Seeks Centre’s Intervention**  
During the recent National Irrigation Ministers’ Conference in Rajasthan, Telangana Irrigation Minister N. Uttam Kumar Reddy met Union Jal Shakti Minister C.R. Patil and Secretary Debashree Mukherjee. In response to his request, the Central government directed KRMB to convene a meeting to resolve the dispute. However, Andhra Pradesh officials failed to attend the scheduled special meeting in Hyderabad on Friday.  

Bojja highlighted that Telangana’s Irrigation Department has been submitting monthly complaints to KRMB about Andhra Pradesh’s unauthorized water usage since November 2024. Despite repeated warnings, the issue has been ignored, exacerbating the crisis.  

As per KRMB records, Andhra Pradesh has already utilized 650 TMC of Krishna River water, while Telangana has used only 225 TMC. Post-bifurcation agreements in 2014-15 set the water-sharing ratio at 66:34, but Telangana now accuses Andhra Pradesh of violating this arrangement by using water at a 75:25 ratio.  

With tensions escalating, Telangana is pushing for an urgent resolution to safeguard its water rights and prevent further depletion of Krishna River resources.