Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu made a strong pitch for linking the Godavari and Cauvery rivers, urging the Centre to take up the project as a national programme on the lines of other inter-State river-linking schemes already under implementation in northern and central India.

Mr. Naidu was speaking at the function organised by the Karnataka government, the Water Resources Department, and the Tungabhadra Board at Munirabad in Koppal district on June 25 for inauguration of the newly-installed spillway gates of the Tungabhadra reservoir at Hosapete in Vijayanagara district.

“River-linking is essential for finding a long-term solution to the country’s recurring water crises, marked by floods in some regions and drought in others. The Union Government has already moved ahead with projects, such as the Ken-Betwa link between Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, and the Parbati-Kalisindh-Chambal link involving Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh,” Mr. Naidu said arguing that a similar national approach should be adopted for the Godavari-Cauvery river-linking project in southern India.

Mr. Naidu said the proposed river-linking exercise should be implemented in a manner that fully protects the rights and water interests of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. At the same time, he said a broader action plan should be prepared to carry water to deficit regions and, if required, extend the benefits further south to Tamil Nadu as well.

Stressing that the country could no longer afford to deal with water distress in a fragmented manner, the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister said inter-linking of rivers is the only sustainable answer to the simultaneous challenges of flood and drought.

“While some river basins witness excess flow during monsoon, others struggle with acute shortages. The transfer of surplus water to deficit basins would help reduce distress, improve irrigation security, and minimise conflicts over water between States, districts and farmers,” he said.

Referring to the current year’s weak inflows into reservoirs such as Tungabhadra and Almatti, Mr. Naidu said the need for a larger national water management strategy had become even more urgent.

Mr. Naidu recalled an earlier example of inter-State cooperation, saying that in 1983, under the leadership of N.T. Rama Rao, the then undivided Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra had together worked to provide water to Chennai. He said that experience demonstrated that large water-sharing arrangements were possible when States worked together in a spirit of cooperation.

Expressing confidence in the Union Government’s ability to push such a programme, he said the country had already made rapid progress in sectors such as technology, highways and telecommunications, and voiced hope that river-linking too could advance under the present national leadership. He said that after successful intra-State river-linking efforts, the time had come for States to support inter-State river-linking in a broader national interest.

The event was attended by Karnataka Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar, Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy, and Union Jal Shakti Minister C.R. Patil.