The ‘Nagarjuna Sagar dispute’ has flared up again between Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. It is known that there was a war atmosphere at Nagarjuna Sagar on the polling day of the Telangana Assembly elections in November last year. The Sagar dispute came to the fore again in November itself.
This time the recording of the right canal water reading led to a dispute. Telangana officials tried to take the water reading. They were stopped by AP Irrigation officials. This led to extreme tension. Telangana officials complained to the Krishna River Management Board management about this incident. KRMB has told the officials of both states about this dispute.
However, it seems that the Telangana dam staff takes note of the Sagar right canal water reading every day. On Saturday too, when Telangana officials went for the right canal water reading as usual, the AP Dam staff blocked the Telangana staff, and the water dispute came to the fore once again.
On November 28 last year, AP Irrigation Department officials tried to release water from the right canal of Nagarjuna Sagar. This led to a serious clash between AP and Telangana. AP irrigation officials tried to release water from the 13 gates of Sagar.
When the Telangana police tried to stop the release of water, the AP police stopped them. This led to a serious clash between them. Barbed fences were erected on both sides of the dam and no one was allowed in for a few days.
As the situation became tense, the Central Jal Shakti Sangam and KRMB officials stepped in and defused the situation. At that time, suspicions arose about this dispute arising on the day of the election. At that time, YSRCP and Telangana BRS were in power in AP.
Although the two governments were friendly, the water disputes could not be resolved. Krishna and Godavari River Boards were formed during the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh in 2014. At that time, the Central Jal Sangam allocated the Srisailam reservoir to Andhra Pradesh and the management of the Nagarjuna Sagar project to Telangana.
However, this decision was not implemented properly. Telangana manages the left power plant of the Srisailam project. AP officials are not allowed. Similarly, in the Nagarjuna Sagar project, gates 1-13 of the 26 gates are managed by Telangana and gates 14-26 by AP. The water from the right canal is released to AP by Telangana officials.
However, the release of water has often become an issue between the two states. There are cases where Telangana officials do not release water even after the Krishna Board has given orders for the release of water. AP is demanding that the joint reservoirs be brought under the jurisdiction of the boards. The Sagar Dam dispute has been going on for decades.
