Shift KRMB headquarters to Vij, demands water users' panel

Vijayawada: The demand for shifting of Krishna River Management Board (KRMB) office from Hyderabad to Vijayawada has been increasing. It may be noted that the State government wrote a letter to Union Ministry of Water Resources to shift the KRMB office to Visakhapatnam.

The KRMB meeting scheduled on January 11 at Hyderabad is going to take a decision on shifting of KRMB office.

Water Users Association Federation State president Alla Venkata Gopalakrishna Rao in a letter written to Chairman, KRMB, on Monday appealed for shifting of KRMB headquarters to Vijayawada for effective supervision of water regulation of common reservoirs Srisailam and Nagarjuna Sagar. The ensuring 17th KRMB board meeting scheduled to be held in Hyderabad is going to take a decision on shifting of KRMB headquarters.

The Water Users Federation president said that the State government earlier requested the Central government to shift the KRMB office to Vijayawada. As part of it, the then Chief Secretary wrote a letter to Secretary, Ministry of Jalsakthi, Government of India, on June, 26, 2020.

The Special Chief Secretary of Water Resources department also wrote a letter on August 4, 2020, for shifting of KRMB to Vijayawada. The Central government also asked the AP government to identify a building to shift KRMB office to Vijayawada. The association president said that in the lower riparian State of AP, Srisailam right bank canal, Nagarjuna Sagar project and Krishna Delta system cover an ayacut of 30.69 lakh acres in Krishna basin. The assured water on common projects Srisailam and Nagarjuna Sagar as per ad-hoc arrangement, the AP quota stands at 380.93 tmcft and Telangana quota at 121.67 tmcft.