Opposition pledges support to Govt.

By Our Special Correspondent

HYDERABAD, SEPT. 8. Opposition parties, including the Congress(I), have pledged complete support to the State Government in the on-going legal battle against Karnataka on the five irrigation projects based on Krishna waters.

The Chief Minister, Mr. N. Chandrababu Naidu, presiding over an all-party meeting here on Saturday, explained the Government's stand on the five projects - Srisailam Right Bank Canal (SRBC), Telugu Ganga, Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC), Pulichintala and Bheema.

Karnataka approached the Supreme Court with a plea that the construction of these projects be stayed based on its claims that they were conceived and were being executed by utilising the surplus waters in violation of the Bachawat Tribunal Award.

The A.P. Government, which is determined to go ahead with these projects ``as they are perfectly legal,'' is required to file its counter-affidavit in the Apex Court by Monday.

Mr. Naidu convened the meeting in a bid to take the Opposition parties into confidence and explained the progress of the legal battle. Counsel of the State Government - Mr. Parasaran and Mr. Ganguli - explained the legal aspects of the case.

Representatives of the Congress(I), the BJP, the CPI(M) and MIM besides the ruling TDP, who attended the meeting, endorsed the Government's stand and assured it of support in resisting the attempts of Karnataka to stall these projects.

``In the larger interests of the State, we have extended full support to the Government though we differ with it on the manner in which some of the projects like Telugu Ganga are being starved of funds,'' Dr. D. L. Ravindra Reddy, APCC(I) general secretary, and Mr. K. R. Suresh Reddy, MLA, told presspersons after the meeting.

Similar sentiments were echoed by Mr. N. Indrasena Reddy (BJP), Mr. Asaduddin Owaisi (MIM), Mr. Koratala Satyanarayana and Mr. S. Malla Reddy of the CPI(M).

The Minister for Major and Medium Irrigation, Mr. M. Venkateswara Rao, explained that the Karnataka Government approached the Supreme Court in 1997 against the five projects and also scheme B of the Bachawat Tribunal Award (which deals with the option of reopening the tribunal award for sharing the unutilised and surplus waters).

The Supreme Court gave a judgment last year which was varyingly implemented by the two States. Karnataka filed an interim application again in the Supreme Court with a plea to stop work on the five projects. The Court asked the A.P. Government to file its counter-affidavit by Sept. 10 and posted the case for hearing on Sept. 17.

The Minister said the Supreme Court had not opposed use of surplus waters by the State but the Karnataka Government was opposing on the ground that huge projects were being built. ``We are not going against the Supreme Court observations or the Bachawat Award,'' Mr. Venkateswara Rao asserted.

The Alamatti dam over the Krishna, which is also the subject of an on-going controversy between the two States, did not figure in the meeting as a Apex Court is dealing with it in a separate case.

The Congress(I) leader, Dr. Ravindra Reddy and Mr. Suresh Reddy said they had raised the issue of slow progress on Telugu Ganga and SLBC, and sought additional funds for the two projects.

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Section  : Southern States
Next     : 'Ten lakh Dalits likely to embrace Buddhism'