K'taka agrees to release Krishna water to T'gana

The government of Karnataka on Wednesday agreed to release Krishna water to the Jurala project in Telangana.

Following a request from the Telangana government, Karnataka Chief Minister D. K. Shivkumar agreed to release three TMCs of water in phases from Narayanpur dam across the Krishna River into the Jurala project to protect standing crops in the erstwhile Mahabubnagar district.

The decision came after a delegation comprising ministers Jupalli Krishna Rao and Vakati Srihari and other public representatives from erstwhile Mahabubnagar district met the Karnataka Chief Minister in Bengaluru.

The Telangana ministers and irrigation officials explained the problems faced by farmers under the Jurala project and requested Shivkumar to release the water.

Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy thanked his Karnataka counterpart Shivkumar for honouring the request to release Krishna River water to Telangana.

“This is a great example of bonhomie between two different states and showcases the love and brotherhood of people of India,” CM Revanth Reddy said in a post on X.

The Telangana delegation had requested Karnataka to release 5,000 cusecs of water per day continuously for 30 days so that standing crops across 5.5 lakh acres under Jurala, Bhima, Nettempadu and Koilsagar projects could be protected.

During the meeting with the Telangana delegation on Tuesday, the Karnataka Chief Minister had given an assurance.

Following this assurance, minister Vakati Srihari directed irrigation officials on Wednesday morning to release water from the Jurala project to meet the irrigation needs of farmers.

On the minister’s direction, the officials lifted the gates and released water from Jurala into the canals.

Farmers in erstwhile Mahabubnagar district had been protesting for the last few days, demanding that the authorities release water to save their standing crops.

Opposition BRS and BJP had also organised protests near the project in Jogulamba Gadwal district to express solidarity with agitating farmers.

Authorities had defended their decision not to release water, citing low water levels due to lack of inflows from the upstream.

Minister Jupally Krishna Rao said the government had been appealing to farmers to take up drought-resistant dry crops to cope with deficient rainfall. He explained that the situation had arisen due to the impact of El Nino.

The minister said the available water had to be used judiciously to meet drinking water needs. About 3 TMCft of silt had accumulated in Jurala, while another 2 TMCft was being stored to meet drinking water requirements, he said.