Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy has formally urged the Centre to intervene in ensuring the state receives its full entitlement of 15.9 TMC of water from the Tungabhadra project, warning that current inflows are falling well short of that allocation. The appeal comes ahead of a high-stakes trilateral meeting of three chief ministers and the Union Minister for Jal Shakti, scheduled for Thursday in Hosapete, Karnataka.

The Water Shortfall

Telangana is legally entitled to 15.9 TMC of water from the Tungabhadra Dam and river flow, but Chief Minister Revanth Reddy noted that actual inflows have not been exceeding five to six TMC — a fraction of the state's rightful share. The shortfall directly threatens irrigation across an ayacut of 83,987 acres covering approximately 75 villages in Jogulamba Gadwal district under the Rajoli Banda Diversion Scheme (RDS).

Engineers briefed the Chief Minister that water diversion at RDS is not proceeding as expected, primarily due to heavy siltation on the Telangana side of the river. An expert committee had recommended desilting as far back as 2004, but those recommendations have remained unimplemented for over two decades.

Key Decisions from the Review Meeting

On Wednesday evening, Chief Minister Revanth Reddy chaired a review meeting on the Tungabhadra project, the RDS, and inter-state river water disputes. The meeting was attended by Irrigation Minister Uttam Kumar Reddy, MP Mallu Ravi, Government Advisor Jitender Reddy, Irrigation Advisor Aditya Nath Das, CMO Secretary Manik Raj, Irrigation Secretary Sridhar, Special Chief Secretary (Energy) Naveen Mittal, and senior Irrigation Department officials.

The meeting resolved to raise the issue of stalled RDS Canal modernisation works — specifically Packages 1 and 2, which have not yet commenced despite the Telangana government having already deposited ₹59 crore for the project. Work under Packages 3 and 4, officials confirmed, has been completed.

Desilting and Karnataka's Role

Since the silted area lies within Karnataka, it was decided to seek that state's cooperation for desilting operations. The Chief Minister directed officials to submit a representation to the Centre requesting immediate implementation of the 2004 expert committee's desilting recommendations. He also ordered senior Irrigation Department officials to prepare a comprehensive report comparing the earlier findings with current ground conditions.

Additionally, Revanth Reddy flagged that the RDS anicut has become structurally unsafe and called for urgent identification of necessary safety works.

Call to Strengthen the Tungabhadra Board

Given that the Tungabhadra project involves three states — Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, and Karnataka — Chief Minister Revanth Reddy requested that the Tungabhadra Board be strengthened under the aegis of the Central Water Commission (CWC) to ensure efficient and equitable utilisation of water shares among all stakeholders.

He also instructed officials to explore alternatives for maximising water utilisation under the Tungabhadra Lift Irrigation Scheme. The trilateral meeting in Hosapete on Thursday, held on the occasion of the inauguration of newly installed crest gates at the Tungabhadra dam, is expected to be the immediate arena for pressing these demands.