Krishna Tribunal seeks one-month's extension

The Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal headed by Justice Brijesh Kumar on Thursday sought an extension of one more month to draft the final report on sharing of river waters between Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.

Justice Brijesh Kumar’s request for an extension came through a letter he wrote on Thursday to Union Minister for Water Resources Pawan Kumar Bansal.

The dispute over the sharing of waters of the River Krishna has been the bone of contention between Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, with the latter proposing to raise the level of Alamati Dam to 524.296 metres.

AP fears that once Karnataka raises the level to capture the excess waters of the river, they will not reach the command areas of Krishna valley dams in AP – including Srisailam, Nagarjunasagar, Jerula and Krishna barrage - jeopardising the economy of AP's rice bowl.

The Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal was constituted on April 2, 2004, for adjudication of the dispute relating to sharing of waters of inter-state river Krishna and river valleys.

AP contends that the additional height at full reservoir of dam would block the flow downstream affecting the riparian rights of the farmers downstream. The diminished flow will end up with Karnataka getting more than its just share of the waters, the government argues.

The state fears that once Karnataka raises the level to capture the excess waters of the river, they will not reach the areas of Krishna valley. Srisailam, Nagarjunasagar, Jurala and Krishna barrage will be affected and the states ‘Rice-Bowl’ of Andhra Pradesh will be jeopardized.