Telangana has right to generate power

Hyderabad: Continuing its counterattack against the demand of Andhra Pradesh that Telangana should stop hydel generation, the TS government shot off a letter to the Krishna River Management Board on Sunday claiming that it had every right to generate hydel power. It said there was no truth in the claims of Andhra Pradesh that it would adversely affect the interests of AP.

The letter written by the Telangana Engineer – in – Chief (Irrigation) C Muralidharan said that the hydel power generation was in consonance with the report sanctioned by the Planning Commission and KWDT -1 (Bachawat Tribunal) and to maintain the carry over storage at Nagarjuna Sagar.

"The objections raised by AP on power generation by Telangana from Srisailam reservoir are frivolous and baseless," he noted in the letter.

He said Section -1 of the 12th Schedule of AP Reorganisation Act -2014 stated that all units of APGenco shall be divided based on the geographical location of the power plant. He also pointed out that the arrangement made in June 2015 by the 3-member committee during the board meetings for sharing of power generated at Srisialam in 50:50 ratio was purely ad hoc and was for that year only.

The letter further said, "Srisailam project was originally conceived as hydro-electric project in 1959 and approved by the Planning Commission in 1963. It did not envisage any diversion of water from the reservoir except for power release".

Hence, the objections raised by Andhra Pradesh against Telangana on power generation were baseless. TS took the stand that the erstwhile AP government did not maintain water levels at Srisailam reservoir above 834 feet during any of the years from 1990-91 to 2019-20 in the months of April and May.

Now they want that water level of 854 feet should be maintained as they want to divert Krishna waters outside the basin. The move of AP would adversely affect the interests of Telangana, the government said.