Southern States - Andhra Pradesh   

BJP demands all-party meet on Krishna basin situation

By Our Staff Reporter

HYDERABAD Aug. 25. The BJP has demanded an all-party meeting to discuss the water situation in Krishna basin and the position of reservoirs meeting the irrigation requirements of the region.

The official spokesman of the party's State unit, S.V. Seshagiri Rao, told newsmen here on Monday that the ayacut of Krishna basin was in crisis as the inflows through the river from the upper reaches in Karnataka were poor. This was in spite of good rain in the kharif.

With low levels of water in KC Canal, the farmers of Kurnool and Cuddapah were a worried lot. The same was the case with farmers of Krishna and Guntur who were hoping for release of water from Nagarjunasagar after having taken up transplantation, he said.

Referring to the demand of the Chief Minister, N. Chandrababu Naidu, that work on inter-linking of rivers be started from the State, Mr. Rao said it was "premature talk,'' aimed at creating confusion in the minds of the public since the Task Force appointed for the job was yet to develop the concepts. The Task Force had made preliminary investigation and was in the process of working out plans and details of the project.

Mr. Rao welcomed linking of Krishna-Godavari basin on a priority basis in the State irrespective of the national grid. The work could not be contradictory to the national water grid. In any case, the upland areas of the State could not be developed without the linkage. There is more than three lakh acres of ayacut in Krishna basin under the Sriramsagar project which is mainly fed by Godavari waters.

Another official spokesman, K. Laxman, demanded a judicial inquiry into the recent liquor deaths in Guntur in view of conflicting claims about the tragedy by the excise and police. While the excise banned three brands of cheap liquor holding them responsible, the police stuck to the cyanide theory and were on the lookout for the person who mixed it in water at bars where it was consumed by the victims. These versions gave rise to several suspicions in the minds of the public.

Mr. Laxman also demanded that the Government not fix any targets of sale on liquor shops. If it wanted to fill its coffers, it must be done only through collection of licence fee. He wanted banning of the bars running orchestras and obscene shows.

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• State police on high alert
• Release of NS water to Krishna delta put on hold
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• BJP demands all-party meet on Krishna basin situation
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