Almatti Dam height row: Maha CM's objection shocking, says Shivakumar; urges K'taka MPs, Union Ministers to unite

Bengaluru, June 2 (IANS) Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister, D.K. Shivakumar, who also holds the Water Resources portfolio, has appealed to Union Ministers and Members of Parliament from the state to come together to protect the state's interests, following Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis' objection to increasing the height of the Almatti Dam Dam.

Addressing the media in Bengaluru on Monday, Deputy CM Shivakumar also stated that he would meet with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Ministers to exert pressure on the issue.

"As per the Krishna Tribunal's award, we need to increase the height of the Almatti Dam to 524 metres to utilise our state's share of water. It's deeply surprising that the Maharashtra Chief Minister, who remained silent when the tribunal's verdict was issued, has now suddenly written a letter to the Karnataka Chief Minister objecting to this," stated Dy CM Shivakumar.

He added, "In this context, I humbly request all MPs and Union Ministers to cooperate in implementing the project and safeguarding the interests of the state and its farmers."

"Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis wrote a letter to our CM Siddaramaiah on May 9. In the letter, he stated that increasing the dam's height would cause flooding in Maharashtra's Sangli and Kolhapur districts and requested a reconsideration of the decision," he stated.

"This letter from the Maharashtra CM has shocked us. Previously, Maharashtra had never raised objections regarding this project. Maharashtra never questioned the 2010 verdict. Maharashtra had even submitted an affidavit supporting the implementation of this project. But now, they've suddenly written this letter," he said.

"This project is a right we have received through the tribunal. Our CM will also write a letter within a day or two. I humbly request all MPs and Union Ministers elected from our state to cooperate with us on this matter," Shivakumar reiterated.

"V. Somanna is part of the Union Ministry of Jal Shakti. The Almatti project is in our state's interest. We don't want conflicts with neighbouring states. The delay in this project is causing an excessive increase in project costs. Rs 1 lakh crore is needed for land acquisition for the project. This project is crucial for us to utilise our share of water," Shivakumar emphasised.

"If they face floods in their state (Maharashtra), they should resolve it internally. We need to meet Union Ministers and the Prime Minister to exert pressure on this matter. We must speak with a united voice on this issue. We've been waiting for the Gazette notification for this project since 2013. How much longer should we wait?" he questioned.

"Our government is ready to come wherever and whenever you call us to protect the interests of our farmers. We will send the letter from the Maharashtra CM and our CM's reply to all MPs. Regarding the project to raise the Almatti Dam to 524 metres to receive our share of water as per the tribunal's verdict, the Chief Minister and I had met with Union Ministers. We had requested them to convene a meeting and issue a notification," he said.

"The Union Ministers considered our request and scheduled a date for the meeting. So, I called an internal meeting with ministers, legal experts, and MLAs from that region to seek their advice. Just as I was about to leave for the meeting, I received a message that it had been postponed. I assumed it might have been postponed due to a wartime atmosphere," he stated.

When asked if there was politics behind the Maharashtra CM's letter, Shivakumar replied, "I will not comment on whether this matter is political or not. I will only speak about our state's interest. For us, the only important thing is the implementation of the project to use our rightful share of water. I will not politicise this issue. I appeal to everyone involved, including Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh, to take your share of water and let us take our rightful share."

When asked what scientific basis their objection had, he said, "Nothing. The verdict was given only after their objections were discussed in the tribunal. Now, only the Central Government's notification remains."

The Lal Bahadur Shastri Dam, also known as Almatti Dam is a hydroelectric project on the Krishna River in Vijayapura district of north Karnataka. The full reservoir level of Almatti dam was originally restricted by the Supreme Court of India.

The Krishna River conflict between Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Maharashtra was resolved by the Brijesh Kumar Tribunal and the dam was authorised to be raised to the height of 524 metres. This increase in height would allow the dam to store nearly 200 TMC. The present height of the dam is 519.26 metres.

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had announced that his government was committed to increasing the height of the Almatti dam from the present 519.6 metres to 524.26 metres to help complete the third phase of the Upper Krishna Project (UKP).

CM Siddaramaiah had also stated that said there was a need to acquire 1,33,867 acres of land for the project, including land that would be submerged and land for rehabilitation and building canals. Of this, 28,967 acres had been acquired so far, he added.

--IANS

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