The Hindu Business Line : Heated debate in AP Assembly over hydel plant in Raichur

THE issue of a mini hydel power plant of 4.5 MW capacity being constructed by a relative of the Chief Minister, Dr Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, in Raichur district of Karnataka has rocked the Legislative Assembly on Thursday.

The plant is being constructed upstream of the Rajolibanda Diversion Scheme (RDS) comprising an anicut across River Tungabhadra. The members of the Opposition Telugu Desam Party made a furore in the House saying that the hydel project would affect the flow of water into the RDS canal depriving irrigation facilities to nearly 30,000 acres of agricultural lands in the drought-prone Mahabubnagar district of the State.

In a statement tabled in the House, the Minister for Major Irrigation, Mr Ponnala Laxmaiah, also expressed apprehensions that water flow into the irrigation canal would be affected as the power project canal has a higher designed discharge capacity of 4,765 cusecs as against 850 cusecs capacity of RDS canal.

Keeping this in view, the Minister stated, a committee of experts had been appointed to study the effect of the mini-hydel project over the irrigation interests of the State and all relevant aspects pertaining to the issue. The committee was asked to submit its report by this month end so that the Government could take up all the necessary steps to protect the interests of farmers.

The Opposition, however, said that the Minister's statement had in fact confirmed their worst fears. "Not a single acre under RDS can be irrigated if the project is constructed," the Leader of the Opposition, Mr N. Chandrababu Naidu, said while taking part in the debate that remained inconclusive on Thursday.

In the heated debate that lasted for more than two hours, charges and counter charges were traded between the treasury and Opposition benches and the TDP members had rushed to the Speaker's podium twice in protest.

The Speaker, Mr K.R. Suresh Reddy, took exception to the behaviour of the TDP members and told them that they "cannot protest in the midst of debate". As the TDP members did not move from the podium despite his repeated requests, the Speaker said, "you cannot dictate terms like this".

While the TDP members insisted that the construction of the mini hydel power project should be stopped in the interests of the farmers of the State, the Congress members maintained that the TDP members has no moral right to raise the issue as the TDP Government had remained a mute witness when Karnataka was utilising more waters of River Krishna during its regime.

The Floor Leaders of the CPI and CPI-M, Mr Ch. Venkata Reddy and Mr N. Narasimhaiah, also observed that the project should be stopped if it affected the water flow into the RDS canal.

The RDS was conceived during the Nizam period to benefit Mahabubnagar and adjoining areas now falling in Karnataka. As per the Krishna Waters Dispute Tribunal Award, Andhra Pradesh's share in the RDS water flows is to the extent of 93 per cent.

This being the position, the Major Irrigation Minister stated that Karnataka permitting the construction of the power plant without the consent of the AP Government was "highly violative of the provisions of the Award".

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