What was Krishna godavari dispute?

Answer 1

The Alamatti dam in Karnataka. Joined by Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh has raised objections to the increased height of the dam.

FACED with a barrage of criticism from the Opposition that it has failed to stop Andhra pradesh from going ahead with the construction of "unauthorised" irrigation projects in the Krishna and Godavari river basins, the Karnataka government is yet to decide which of the two options it must pursue: approach the not yet functional three-member Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal (KWDT) or file an affidavit and/or a contempt of court petition in the Supreme Court seeking its intervention.

As a prelude to the crucial decision -which will be taken only after the State's legal team headed by Fali S. Nariman gives its opinion - Chief Minister N. Dharam Singh is likely to lead an all-party delegation to New Delhi to impress upon the Prime Minister the need to restrain Andhra Pradesh from going ahead with projects that have yet to receive the mandatory sanction of the Planning Commission, the Central Water Commission (CWC), and other statutory bodies.

According to irrigation experts in Karnataka, the crux of the matter is the present predicament of Andhra Pradesh which was able to use liberally the waters of the Krishna for decades, as the governments of the upper riparian States, Karnataka and Maharashtra, had ignored the needs of the areas of the Krishna basin that came under their control. In Karnataka's case many drought-prone, backward areas became part of it after the reorganisation of States.

Over the past decade Karnataka has been using its share of the waters in earnest. This has naturally left Andhra Pradesh with a thinner flow in the river to harness. The water available for it got further reduced after Maharashtra too began to utilise its share.