The Telangana Government today assured Karnataka it would release up to two TMC of water
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The Telangana Government today assured Karnataka it would release up to two TMC (thousand million cubic feet) of water to meet the shortage in Tungabhadra sub basin project area, Karnataka Water Resources Minister M B Patil said.
Patil had met Telangana Irrigation Minister T Harish Rao requesting him to allow Karnataka to use 3.5 TMC of water under Rajolibanda Diversion Scheme (River Assistance Quota) on humanitarian grounds.
"They (The Telangana government) said they require 1.5 TMC for standing crops on 7500 acres. They will give us 1.5 TMC to two TMC after meeting their crop requirements," he told PTI after the meeting.
As per the KWDT (Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal) award, Telangana's share towards Rajolibanda diversion scheme is 3.501 TMC but this quota has not been utilised so far as downstream of Tungabhadra dam has received good rains leading to sufficient flow in the river in the border of Telangana, he added.
Patil said due to scanty rainfall in the catchment areas of Tungabhadra sub basin, the total inflow to Tungabhadra dam is 123 TMC and, after deducting nine TMC towards evaporation losses, 114 TMC is available for utilisation for the year 2017-18.
Patil recalled that during 2016-17, as a humanitarian gesture, Karnataka had released one TMC of water from Narayanpur reservoir to cater to the drinking water needs of Mahabubnagar district of Telangana. He added that during 2017-18, as per Telangana's request, water has been released from Narayanpur reservoir to cater to the drinking water needs, the Minister said.
Promising reciprocation, Patil said, "We will reciprocate. From Almatti and Narayanpur, we will give one or two TMC this year also if required by Telangana. It's a mutual relationship for drinking water."
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