HYDERABAD: In a counter-affidavit filed in National Green Tribunal (NGT), Andhra Pradesh government has opposed Telangana’s move to construct Dindi lift irrigation scheme (LIS).
Andhra Pradesh water resources department secretary J Syamala Rao, in the affidavit filed in National Green Tribunal, said that there was no prior environmental clearance (EC) for the project. Also, there was no water allocation for the project, he added.
“Telangana is unauthorisedly constructing Dindi lift irrigation scheme without obtaining prior environmental clearance as mandated by the Environmental Impact Assessment notification of 2006,” the affidavit added. Andhra Pradesh said Telangana was constructing a common pump house for Palamuru-Rangareddy and Dindi at Yelluru village, proposing to lift two TMC (thousand million cubic) feet per day for 60 days and utilise 1.5 thousand million cubic for Palumuru-Rangareddy lift irrigation scheme and 05 thousand million cubic for Dindi lift irrigation scheme by diverting water from Anjanagiri reservoir.
“Dindi lift irrigation scheme though undertaken as an independent project, some of its components are common for both the projects. The age-old irrigation systems of Andhra Pradesh are being affected besides depriving drinking water needs due to the unauthorised construction of Dindi lift irrigation scheme. The need in any area of the state is not the sole basis to undertake a project when there is no allocation and entitlement for a riparian state to utilise the proposed water from an interstate river,” alleged the Andhra Pradesh water resources department.
“Without any allocation for the project, it has a catastrophic impact on the age-old irrigation systems KDS, KC Canal, Nagarjunsagar, SRBC and Chennai drinking water supply and other drinking water requirements,” Andhra Pradesh water resources department secretary J Syamala Rao added.
