NEWS: The Union Government has proposed a High-Level Committee after Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana reached a rare consensus to resolve the long-pending Tungabhadra basin water-sharing dispute.
About
- Major right-bank tributary of the Krishna River.
- Formed by the confluence of the Tunga and Bhadra rivers at Kudli (Karnataka).
- Originates in the Western Ghats (Varaha Parvatha–Gangamoola).
- Flows about 531 km through Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana before joining the Krishna River at Sangameswaram.
Tungabhadra Reservoir Project
- Commissioned in the 1950s near Hosapete, Karnataka.
- Irrigates about 16.38 lakh acres across Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana.
Water Sharing
- Governed by the Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal-I (1969) under Justice R.S. Bachawat.
- Water allocated in a 65:35 ratio between Karnataka and the undivided Andhra Pradesh.
- After the 2014 bifurcation, Telangana was allocated 15.9 TMC from the Tungabhadra system.
Key Issues
- Heavy siltation has reduced the reservoir's original 134 TMC storage capacity.
- Poor condition of the Rajolibanda Diversion Scheme (RDS) limits Telangana's utilisation to 5–6 TMC.
- Upper Bhadra Project: Andhra Pradesh has challenged Karnataka's lift irrigation project in the Supreme Court, citing reduced downstream flows.
Constitutional & Legal Framework
- Entry 17, State List: Water is a State subject.
- Entry 56, Union List: Regulation and development of inter-State rivers.
- Article 262: Parliament can provide for adjudication of inter-State river disputes and exclude Supreme Court jurisdiction through the Inter-State River Water Disputes Act, 1956.