Harish Rao Accuses Revanth Reddy Government of Compromising Telangana’s Water Rights

BRS leader and former minister Harish Rao has accused the Telangana government, led by Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, of failing to protect the state’s water rights amid proposals concerning the Godavari–Cauvery river-link project. Addressing the media at Telangana Bhavan, he said the National Water Development Agency (NWDA) had included the river-link proposal on the agenda for its November 3 meeting in Delhi. Rao alleged that the proposed diversion route from Polavaram, instead of the previously discussed Ichampally or Sammakka Sagar route through Nagarjuna Sagar, could adversely affect Telangana’s irrigation, drinking water and industrial requirements. He also criticised Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu for seeking changes to the proposal and accused the Congress government of remaining silent. These allegations reflect the BRS leader’s position; the implications for the states’ water allocations would depend on the final project design, approvals and applicable agreements.

Rao further argued that Telangana should receive its rightful share before any inter-state diversion proceeds. Referring to the proposed utilisation of 148 thousand million cubic feet (TMC) of water identified by the NWDA for the link project, he cited a proposed allocation of 43 TMC for Telangana, 44 TMC for Andhra Pradesh, 42.5 TMC for Tamil Nadu, 16 TMC for Karnataka and 2.5 TMC for Puducherry. He demanded clarity on Telangana’s entitlements and called for protection of pending irrigation projects, including Sammakka Sagar and other schemes. Rao also criticised the state government’s handling of water shortages and alleged that underused pumping capacity at projects such as Devadula, Kannepalli and Kalwakurthy had worsened the situation for farmers. He urged the government to oppose any proposal that could harm Telangana’s interests and warned that the BRS would continue to fight for the state’s water rights. Former ministers Gangula Kamalakar and Satyavathi Rathod, MLA Kaleru Venkatesh and other BRS leaders attended the media briefing.