Overview
- Former minister T. Harish Rao alleged the Congress government enabled Andhra Pradesh’s Polavaram–Nallamalasagar Link Project and cited documents claiming the CWC approved a related Polavaram–Banakacharla plan with permission to divert 200 tmcft.
- Harish Rao said Andhra Pradesh withdrew the Banakacharla route after Karnataka and Maharashtra objections and repackaged the scheme as the Nallamalasagar link to move water toward Rayalaseema.
- He criticized the timing of Telangana’s legal action, saying the state filed in the Supreme Court on December 16 after Andhra Pradesh had floated tenders with a December 11 bid deadline, and urged a protest in New Delhi.
- The government countered that it is actively contesting the project, stating that Writ Petition No. 1258 is filed and listed on January 5 in Court No. 1, seeking to restrain Andhra Pradesh from preparing the DPR and executing the link.
- Harish Rao also opposed Telangana’s December 23 appointment of retired IAS officer Adityanath Das to head a technical committee on inter-state water issues and demanded his removal.