In India, water is a combustible entity. Sharing of river waters between riparian states has often triggered furious emotions, fractious quarrels, and even violence. Mediators and tribunals try to please everyone but usually end up disappointing all. The Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal’s (KWDT) verdict on Thursday also tries to strike a balance between the competing claims of Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh that share the waters of the river. And Andhra Pradesh, for one, is surely disappointed by the verdict.
Former Supreme Court judge Brijesh Kumar has estimated the total availability of water in the Krishna at 2,578 tmc ft (thousand million cubic feet) and at 65 per cent dependability. This means that the above-said quantity of water will be available for 65 out of 100 years; and the riparian states will have to store for the 35 “bad” years. This is a significant change from the Bachawat Tribunal estimate, arrived at in 1976, of 2,130 tmc ft at 75 per cent dependability.
Though Andhra Pradesh has got the highest increase in allocation of water among the three states, it is also the biggest loser and has the biggest cause for worry. It is dependent on upper states for inflows. Almost 85 per cent of its allotted share comes from Karnataka and Maharashtra. The upper states can now impound more water, leading to delayed release to AP. Given its regular encounters with untimely rains and natural calamities such as cyclones, the tribunal’s latest order will only add to the woes of the state. Earlier, as the lowest riparian state with the smallest catchment area, AP had Bachawat’s “liberty” to use all the surplus water, but could not use a single drop as it did not construct dams on time. The state is now in the process of constructing a string of projects on the river. The new allocations mean that the water share has to be readjusted between the various projects, which could be contentious given the competing claims of the three regions. Also, the net effect of the re-allocation of water share and removal of surplus water means AP will lose a significant quantity of water.
Karnataka has reason to be happy since it has been allowed to increase the height of the Almatti dam to 524.26 metres. Also, with an increased water share of 911 tmc ft, Karnataka will be able to irrigate an additional six lakh hectares in the dry districts of Belgaum, Bijapur, Raichur, Bagalkot and Koppal. Maharashtra, which gets an additional 80 tmc ft for general use and 25 tmc ft for westward diversion for a hydel project, is unhappy over the increased height of the Almatti dam. The state fears that its Sangli district will face floods if Karnataka fills up the dam and may challenge the tribunal’s order on the Almatti dam.
There is also good news for Chennai. The tribunal has ordered all three states to contribute 5 tmc ft water to the Chennai Drinking Water Scheme. Indira Gandhi, when Prime Minister, had also asked all the states to contribute water but Karnataka and Maharashtra had ignored the directive, leaving it to AP to bear the burden of supplying water to Chennai through the Telugu Ganga scheme. Tamil Nadu is perhaps the one state that would be genuinely happy with the verdict.