Stream of conflict

Krishna river dispute shows why there is an urgent need to rethink the way inter-state rivers are managed and governed

- SHIVANGI AGARWAL

ON JULY 15, 2021, the Union government issued two gazette notifications with the hope of ending the long and bitter dispute between Karnataka and Telangana over the sharing of Krishna and Godavari waters. Simply put, the notifications ensure that the states will no longer be a part of the decision-making process.

Water sharing has been a sore point between the states ever since Telangana was carved out of Andhra Pradesh in June 2014. To address the issue, it was decided that river management boards will be set up to look after the operations and water allocation for hydro projects on a case-by-case basis. These boards were to be supervised by a tribunal and an apex council, comprising chief ministers of both the states and the Union minister of Jal Shakti, giving a say to the Centre and both states in all matters. Still, the dispute continued.