The Babli project / barrage is a controversial reservoir project being constructed by
Maharashtra across the river
Godavari, disputed by
Telangana
Telangana (; , ) is a state in India situated on the south-central stretch of the Indian peninsula on the high Deccan Plateau. It is the eleventh-largest state and the twelfth-most populated state in India with a geographical area of and 3 ...
. The
Supreme Court of India delivered a ruling after seven years in favour of Maharashtra with the Andhra Pradesh government expected to appeal against it.
History
The dispute arises from the fact that
S.B. Chavan and
Jalagam Vengal Rao reached an agreement in October 1975, which was later made part of the
Godavari Water Disputes Tribunal
The Government of India (GoI) constituted a common tribunal on 10 April 1969 to solve the river water utilization disputes about the river basin states of Godavari and Krishna rivers under the provisions of Interstate River Water Disputes Act â ...
(GWDT) Award. As per the terms of the pact, Maharashtra could utilise 60 tmcft (thousand million cubic feet) of Godavari water while Andhra Pradesh could go ahead with building the
Sriram Sagar Project (SRSP) and utilise the rest of the water.
Water Allocation
Telangana contended that Maharashtra has used up its quota in course of time by building four projects. Yet, in an action without precedent, Maharashtra began construction of the Babli project on the foreshores of SRSP and many small projects upstream.
Eighteen
lakh acres under the SRSP ayacut in the
Telangana
Telangana (; , ) is a state in India situated on the south-central stretch of the Indian peninsula on the high Deccan Plateau. It is the eleventh-largest state and the twelfth-most populated state in India with a geographical area of and 3 ...
state will become barren if Maharashtra is allowed to have its way.
Legal battle
As per a report, dated 30 Jan 2012 even when Andhra Pradesh is waging a legal battle against Maharashtra's Babli barrage and eleven other barrages across the Godavari river, Maharashtra has agreed to Andhra Pradesh's proposal for constituting an Inter State Board (ISB) for implementing the Rs 403 billion mega
Pranahita Chevella lift irrigation scheme
The Pranahita Chevella Lift Irrigation Project is a lift irrigation project to harness the water of Pranhita tributary of Godavari river for use in the Telangana state of India. The river water diversion barrage across the Pranahita river is lo ...
. With this green signal, Andhra Pradesh has overcome a major hurdle in making its dream project a reality.
2013 Supreme Court ruling
The Supreme Court ruled in favour of Maharashtra, with safeguards contained in the judgment included the stipulation to open Babli gates during the monsoon period (July to October ) to allow inflows to SRSP. The Union Cabinet on 17 October 2013 gave its approval for Constitution of the 3-Members Supervisory Committee on the Babhali Barrage to implement the directions of the Supreme Court.
See also
*
Sriram Sagar Project
The Sriram Sagar Project is also known as the Pochampadu Project is an Indian flood-flow project on the Godavari. The Project is located in Nizamabad district, 3 km away from National Highway 44. It has been described by The Hindu as a "li ...
*
Nizam Sagar
Nizam Sagar Dam is an Indian dam named after the Nizam of Hyderabad. It is a reservoir constructed across the Manjira River, a tributary of the Godavari River, between Achampet and BanjePally villages of the Kamareddy district in Telangana, I ...
References
{{Coord, 18, 51, 12, N, 77, 49, 14, E, type:landmark_region:IN-MR, display=title
Dams on the Godavari River
Dams in Andhra Pradesh
Reservoirs in India
History of Andhra Pradesh (1947–2014)
Inter-state disputes in India
Godavari basin
Proposed infrastructure in India