Bengaluru: Amid a severe drought that has seen 177 taluks declared drought-hit and a raging row with Tamil Nadu over Cauvery water release, Karnataka on Wednesday agreed to release 3 tmcft of Krishna water, in phases, to Telangana to protect standing crops in the neighbouring state.
Karnataka has recorded a 36% rainfall deficit, with 642 mm of rain against the normal 852 mm. Deputy chief minister G Parameshwara has said the number of drought-hit taluks could rise to around 200 as further assessments are completed.
“When 177 taluks have been declared drought-hit, how can we afford to release water to another state, especially when there are predictions of a worse drought due to poor monsoon rainfall?” the BJP said. Chief minister D K Shivakumar agreed to release water from Narayanpur reservoir to Jurala project following a request from Telangana, which is facing an irrigation crisis in erstwhile Mahabubnagar district. The decision has given Karnataka’s Opposition another issue to target the govt with, coming amid the special legislature session on the drought crisis.
The project recorded about 2,687 cusecs of inflow, allowing water to be released for irrigation. He said about 3 tmcft of storage at Jurala was affected by silt.
“This is a great example of bonhomie between two different states and showcases the love and brotherhood of people of India,” Revanth said in a post on X. Jupally said the available water had to be used judiciously, particularly to meet drinking water requirements. Telangana chief minister A Revanth Reddy thanked Shivakumar for responding to the request.