Hyderabad: The Union ministry of Jal Shakti has stepped in to mediate a water-sharing dispute between Andhra Pradesh (AP) and Telangana. This dispute has led to a series of high-level meetings and interventions regarding the Nagarjuna Sagar and Srisailam projects, amid growing tensions and security concerns.
A night before Telangana went to polls, hundreds of armed Andhra Pradesh police personnel barged into the Nagarjuna Sagar dam and took control of the premises. They clashed with Telangana police and damaged CCTV cameras installed there. Two cases were filed against AP police.
Jal Shakti calls meeting on Dec 6
On December 6th, The Chief Secretaries of AP and Telangana, Krishna River Management Board (KRMB) officials, and security forces will participate in a meeting with the Ministry of Jal Shakti to resolve the ongoing Krishna water dispute and discuss the management of the contentious dam projects.
This meeting follows a previous dialogue attempted to resolve the dispute. On Saturday, a video conference led by Union Jal Shakti Secretary Debashree Mukherjee was held. However, Telangana’s Chief Secretary, A Shanti Kumari, was unable to attend due to election-related commitments in the state, prompting a rescheduling to December 6.
CRPF deployed
In response to the rising tensions, between the police forces of the two states, the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) has been deployed at the Nagarjuna Sagar Project to maintain security and surveillance. This move comes after orders from the Union Jal Shakti Department to AP to halt water withdrawal and revert to the status quo as of November 28.
Cases against AP police
Telangana has filed two cases against AP Police, accusing them of wrongful restraint, trespass, and mischief at the Nagarjuna Sagar dam. These allegations come from an incident where AP police allegedly took control of part of the dam and released water without authorization.
