AP urges TN to put pressure on Karnataka, Maharashtra

Hyderabad, Aug 5 (UNI) Urging Tamil Nadu to exert pressure on the upper riparian states of Karnataka and Maharashtra to release their share of five tmc ft of Krishna water each to Chennai, the Andhra Pradesh Government today asserted it would take up the matter with the Krishna Water Tribunal along with Tamil Nadu.

Addressing a joint press conference here along with Tamil Nadu Ministers M K Stalin and K Ponmudi, to announce the release of Krishna waters from August 15 to the teeming metropolis, Dr Reddy said Tamil Nadu had agreed with the state's view point.

Lamenting the Telugu Ganga project started in 1983 by the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had not been completed fully, he said ''but in the next one or two years we will see to it that this scheme is completed and try to give maximum extent of water to Tamil Nadu''.

On Tamil Nadu's apprehension over the Andhra Pradesh Government's proposed project across Palar to meet the drinking water needs of Chittoor, he said the Tamil Nadu delegation had been assured that the project was only at the investigation stage.

''We will not do anything against the interests of Tamil Nadu. On completion of investigation, we have assured them to send the project design to them'', he added.

Agreeing to suspend the lining works undertaken between Kandeluru and Poondi, to release Krishna waters to Chennai as the storage would last only for a month, Dr Reddy gave an assurance to the delegation that the storage capacity in Srisailam will be improved and Somasila and Kandaleru would be brought to full capacity to provide drinking water to Chennai even during the lean years.

Tamil Nadu Government was planning to file an expedition petition to take up the civil suit filed by it seeking a direction from the Supreme Court to restrain the Andhra Pradesh Government from constructing check dams across the Palar river, which catered to the drinking water needs in and around Vellore, Arcot, Kanchipuram, Chengalpet, Chennai and the Kalpakkam Atomic Power station.

UNI SM LS KP1912