Latest news with #KWDT-II
The Hindu
5 days ago
- Politics
- The Hindu
Siddaramaiah writes to Maharashtra Chief Minister defending decision to increase Almatti dam height
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has written to Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis defending Karnataka's decision to increase the height of the Lal Bahadur Shastri reservoir on the Krishna at Almatti. He has argued that Karnataka has the right to increase the dam height even without waiting for the Union government to publish the Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal award. This is in response to Mr. Fadnavis' letter on May 9 that objected to Karnataka planning to increase the dam height. The Maharashtra government had urged Karnataka to 'reconsider the plan to increase the height of Almatti dam from the present level of 519.6 metres to full reservoir level (FRL) of 524.256 metres to protect the safety of people from floods in Kolhapur and Sangli districts in Maharashtra.' Unfounded fears In the letter, Mr. Siddaramaiah said that Maharashtra's fears of flooding owing to the Krishna backwaters are unfounded. KWDT-I headed by Justice R.S. Bachawat, and subsequently the KWDT-II headed by Justice Brijesh Kumar, had looked into the issue and ruled that Karnataka could not be denied the right to increase the dam height, in 2013. 'Karnataka planned the construction of the Almatti dam up to FRL 524.256 m back in 1969. The KWDT-I headed by Justice R.S. Bachawat, and subsequently the KWDT-II headed by Justice Brijesh Kumar have not imposed any restrictions on the height of the Almatti dam,' the letter said, pointing out that objections of both Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra had been overruled after considering the views of experts. While Andhra Pradesh had demanded that the dam height be restricted to 515 m, Maharashtra demanded it be kept at 512 m. The Chief Minister noted in the letter that even though there is no backwater effect, a three-tier Inter-State flood co-ordination committee had been established by both the States to prevent any inadvertent mismanagement in the regulation, the integration, and the coordination of flood monitoring. 'I may also recall that the Vadhere committee of technical experts, appointed by the Maharashtra government, had gone into the alleged flooding in 2019 and blamed it on encroachment, since these encroachments are narrowing the channels in Sangli and Kolhapur districts,'' he said. Money spent Karnataka has spent nearly ₹20,000 crore to create infrastructure for the utilisation of the additional allocation of 173 tmcft of water besides the allocation of 729 tmcft under the KWDT-I decision. Even Maharashtra has reportedly spent on infrastructure to utilise the additional 85 tmcft of surplus water allocated to it, the letter noted. Mohan Kataraki, senior advocate at the Supreme Court who has argued for Karnataka in water disputes, said: 'By this letter, Karnataka has clarified its stand not only on submergence issue but also on its right to raise the Almatti dam height to FRL 524.256 m even without waiting for publication of the award by the Union government under Section 6(1) of the Inter State Water Disputes Act of 1956.'
The Hindu
03-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Karnataka gears up to put pressure on Centre to issue notification on Krishna Water Dispute Tribunal-II award
As the crucial meeting of irrigation Ministers of the four States that make up the Krishna river basin comprising Karnataka, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana has been scheduled for May 7 in New Delhi, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah chaired a high-level meeting on Saturday to finalise the State's stand on the matter and urge the Centre to issue a gazette notification on the Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal-II award to ensure protection of the State' share of water. Union Minister for Jal Shakti C.R. Patil has convened the meeting to discuss the award made by the KWDT-II. Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar, who also holds the Major and Medium Irrigation portfolio, and a battery of officials, would represent Karnataka. The tribunal, led by Brijesh Kumar, which started its proceedings in July 2007, submitted its draft verdict on December 31, 2010, and the final verdict on November 29, 2013. The KWDT-II allocated 73 tmcft of water to Karnataka, of which 130 tmcft has been allocated for the Upper Krishna Project-III (UKP-III). All-party meeting Mr. Siddaramaiah has instructed officials to make all arrangements to safeguard the State's interests and secure the share of water. After the meeting on May 7, the Chief Minister has decided to hold an all-party meeting to discuss the implementation of the award of the KWDT-II. Mr. Shivakumar told reporters that the State government had submitted petitions to the Centre in the past and urged it to issue the gazette notification on the tribunal's award. Despite several pleas by the State, the governments at the Centre had not notified the award for the last 15 years. The Chief Minister said farmers of the UKP-III phase area have been waiting for several years to irrigate their farmlands by utilising the water share under the tribunal award. The Supreme Court has permitted the issue of a gazette notification when petitions regarding the allocation of water by the Cauvery Water Dispute Tribunal Award were pending before it. Similarly, the Jal Shakthi Ministry issued a notification on the Mahadayi Water Dispute Tribunal on February 20, 2020. Though Andhra Pradesh and Telangana filed petitions before the Supreme Court, after the bifurcation of the erstwhile Andhra Pradesh, the Centre would be urged to issue a notification on the KWDT-II award, the Chief Minister said. Height of Almatti Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister H.K. Patil told reporters that legislators of north Karnataka have urged Mr. Siddaramaiah to take steps to increase the height of the Alamatti dam from 519 m to 524.256 m to store more water, as there was no objection to raising the dam height. Mr. Patil said since the KWDT-II was not notified, the water is not flowing in the UKP-III canals, which were developed spending ₹16,000 crore. Ministers, including M.B. Patil, R.B. Thimmapur, Sharanapagouda Darshanapur, H.C. Mahadevappa, and Shivanand S. Patil, and Chief Secretary Shalini Rajneesh, and advocate Mohan Katarki attended the meeting.
