River water disputes: TG govt ready for dialogue with AP
Hyderabad: The Telangana Cabinet will meet on June 24 to finalize an action plan to find an amicable solution to the snowballing inter-state row over the Bankacharla project through a dialogue with Andhra Pradesh government, while keeping its option to fight for the state's needs. During an interaction with media persons before leaving for Hyderabad from New Delhi on Friday evening, Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy said that he did not want to develop animosity with the neighbouring state.
He said he would prefer to resolve water disputes in a friendly atmosphere.
In the wake of rising river water disputes among southern states, particularly AP, Karnataka and Maharashtra, the Chief Minister said: 'Our policy is to continue good relations with all states and find a solution to the river water disputes with each state through talks only'.
Revanth Reddy took a broadside at former chief minister and BRS supremo K Chandrashekar Rao and T Harish Rao for politicizing the Banakacharla issue.
He said that the Banakacharla issue was the result of KCR and Harish Rao agreeing to AP lifting water from Godavari at the Apex Council meeting in 2016. The official meetings held between AP and Telangana CMs in 2019 also sowed the seeds of exploitation of Godavari water by the neighbouring state.
Revanth Reddy questioned the silence of the former chief minister KCR on the GOs issued by the AP government in 2016 and 2018 for Banakacharla.
The CM took a swipe also at Union Minister for Coal G Kishan Reddy for not coming forward to protect the interests of Telangana from the exploitation of Godavari and Krishna water by Andhra Pradesh. 'Kishan Reddy is tutor of KTR and KTR is playing a liaison officer role for the Union Minister,' he alleged.
Revanth Reddy criticized KCR for not irrigating even 50,000 acres by spending more than Rs 2 lakh crore on Kaleshwaram. The multi-crore Kaleshwaram project was left unused after the damages to the three barrages of Medigadda, Annaram and Sundilla.
Further, the Chief Minister alleged that the Union government was indifferent towards Telangana in sanctioning the state's irrigation projects and allocating funds for them. He wondered why the Centre was proactive in releasing funds liberally to the Polavaram project, although Telangana had raised strong objections.
He sought to know the Centre's main intention in approving the Banakacharla project without water allocations.
'PM Narendra Modi needs the support of AP CM N Chandrababu Naidu to run the coalition government at the Centre. The BRS wanted to raise the water disputes to survive in Telangana politics', he said.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hindustan Times
17 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
Sonia Gandhi hits out at India's ‘silence' as Israel bombs Iran, blasts Netanyahu, Trump
Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi on Saturday called on the Centre to comment on the Israel-Palestine and Israel-Iran conflicts, saying India's silence represents not just a loss of voice but also 'a surrender of values'. India News In an article in 'The Hindu', Sonia Gandhi alleged that the Indian government was earlier silent on Israel's offensive in Gaza, and is doing the same during the ongoing conflict with Iran. The Congress veteran also accused the government of abandoning India's long-standing and principled commitment to a peaceful two-nation solution envisioning an independent Palestine along with Israel. "New Delhi's silence on the devastation in Gaza and now on the unprovoked escalation against Iran reflects a disturbing departure from our moral and diplomatic traditions. This represents not just a loss of voice but also a surrender of values," Sonia Gandhi wrote in the article. Her opinion piece comes days after the external affairs ministry expressed deep concern after Israel launched waves of airstrikes on Iranian military and nuclear sites. Emphasising that India could still speak on the two key global issues, Sonia said India should use every diplomatic channel to promote a return to dialogue in West Asia. She also said that in the face of this humanitarian catastrophe, "the Narendra Modi government has all but abandoned India's long-standing and principled commitment to a peaceful two-state solution, one that envisions a sovereign, independent Palestine living side-by-side with Israel in mutual security and dignity." Defending Iran's sovereignty in light of Israel's "troubling and unlawful" strikes on June 13, Sonia said the world has "witnessed the dangerous consequences of unilateral militarism". Drawing parallels with the situation in Gaza for nearly two years now, the Congress leader alleged that Israel struck parts of Iran with utter disregard to civilian lives. However, when Israel struck Iran, it said it targeted nuclear and military sites, top generals and nuclear scientists. "These actions will only deepen instability and sow the seeds of further conflict," she noted, adding that Congress has condemned these bombings and targeted assassinations on Iranian soil. 'Iran a long-standing friend' As she called on the government to voice its opinion on the Israel-Iran conflict, Sonia Gandhi spoke highly of the Islamic Republic of Iran, saying the country has been a long-standing friend to India. "It has a history of steadfast support, including in Jammu and Kashmir at crucial junctures. In 1994, Iran helped block a resolution critical of India at the UN Commission on Human Rights on the Kashmir issue," she noted. "Indeed, the Islamic Republic of Iran has been much more cooperative with India than its predecessor, the Imperial State of Iran, that had tilted towards Pakistan in the 1965 and 1971 wars," she added. Referring to the India-Israel strategic relations in recent decades, she said, "This unique position gives our country the moral responsibility and the diplomatic leverage to act as a bridge for de-escalation and peace." She also brought attention to a significant number of Indian nationals living and working across West Asia, and how a conflict there affects their lives too. Big attack on Netanyahu, Trump Lashing out at Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Sonia Gandhi alleged that the government led by him "has a long and unfortunate record of undermining peace and nurturing extremism". She alleged that given the record, "it is not surprising that Netanyahu would choose escalation over engagement". After the Israel-Iran conflict began on June 13, Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to his Israeli counterpart and conveyed India's concerns about the situation in West Asia. He had called for the early restoration of peace in the region. Sonia Gandhi also slammed US President Donald Trump, who has taken a tough stance against Iran amid the ongoing conflict, and is deliberating on whether the US military would step in. She referred to Trump calling his own director of national intelligence Tulsi Gabbard 'wrong' in saying that the US believed Iran was not building a nuclear weapon, and said his remark was "deeply disappointing". "Israel's recent actions against Iran have taken place in an atmosphere of impunity, enabled by near-unconditional support from powerful western nations," Gandhi said.
Time of India
17 minutes ago
- Time of India
Net direct tax collections dip 1.39% to Rs 4.59 lakh crore despite 5% rise in gross mop-up; refunds surge 58%
India's net direct tax collections for the ongoing financial year 2025-26 declined by 1.39 per cent to Rs 4.59 lakh crore as of June 19, mainly due to a sharp surge in refund issuances, according to government data released on Saturday. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now In the same period last year, net direct tax collections had stood at Rs 4.65 lakh crore, according to news agency PTI. Gross direct tax collections, however, rose by 4.86 per cent to Rs 5.45 lakh crore, up from Rs 5.19 lakh crore collected during the corresponding period in FY24. The fall in net collections is attributed to a 58 per cent increase in refunds, which touched Rs 86,385 crore so far this fiscal, indicating improved processing and faster taxpayer services. Advance tax collections between April 1 and June 19, 2025, showed a modest growth of 3.87 per cent at Rs 1.56 lakh crore, a significant slowdown from the 27 per cent year-on-year growth recorded in the same period last year. Corporate advance tax collections rose 5.86 per cent to Rs 1.22 lakh crore, while non-corporate advance tax collections fell 2.68 per cent to Rs 33,928 crore. Corporate tax collections overall fell by over 5 per cent to Rs 1.73 lakh crore, while non-corporate tax collections, largely personal income tax, saw a marginal rise of 0.7 per cent to Rs 2.73 lakh crore. Securities Transaction Tax (STT) collections also grew by 12 per cent, reaching Rs 13,013 crore during this period. Meanwhile, the Income Tax Department has introduced the 'e-Pay Tax' feature on its official portal to simplify the tax payment process, according to news agency ANI. The broader tax reform agenda is also advancing, with the Income Tax Bill 2025 currently under review by a Select Committee. Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman had earlier announced that the new Bill, which aims to replace the existing Income Tax Act of 1961 with a more concise, litigation-free law, will be taken up in the monsoon session of Parliament. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The proposed structure also ensures zero tax liability for individuals earning up to Rs 12 lakh annually due to a raised rebate of Rs 60,000, as stated by the finance minister in her Budget speech. The government has invited stakeholder suggestions on the draft Bill to fine-tune the reforms.
Hans India
18 minutes ago
- Hans India
HDK can neither win nor form government, asserts Shivakumar
Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar on Friday hit out at Union Minister H D Kumaraswamy saying he will neither win nor form a government in Karnataka. Speaking to reporters at his Sadashivanagar residence, he said, 'Kumaraswamy had called on his supporters to get ready for a BJP-JDS government. I had then replied to him stating that I will present him a suit if he won the election and formed the government in 2028.' He was replying to a reporter who Kumaraswamy's statement that he wasn't that poor to take clothes from him. 'The Housing Minister has only transferred the quota of minorities from rural areas to urban area as the number of minorities is low in the rural areas. The quota is not being snatched from anyone to give it to minorities,' he clarified. 'As per the Sachar Committee report, minorities were given quota in rural areas also. But the quota was not being utilised as the number of minorities in rural areas was low. It is now being transferred from rural areas to urban areas. We are not snatching away anything from anyone. As much as 90% of the SC/STs have been given homes. The government can't provide funds unless they lay the foundation for the house,' he explained. 'Opposition parties are politicising this, let them do it. The government can't incur losses due to flats lying vacant. We had given the opportunity for SC/STs and their quota was over. We then transferred it to backward classes and general categories. We are a government which believes in equal life and equal share philosophy. Let them discuss our work in the Assembly session,' he added. Asked about B R Patil's accusation that houses are allotted under Rajiv Gandhi housing scheme only if bribes are paid, he said he was not aware of it.
