Godavari Bankarcherala project: Harish Rao lambasts CM Revanth for accusing KCR of distorting statements
Telangana government is preparing to file a writ petition in the Supreme Court, challenging the legality of the project
By Newsmeter Network
Hyderabad: Former Minister Harish Rao lambasted Chief Minister Revanth Reddy for accusing former chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao of distorting statements on the Godavari Bankarcherala project.
After the all-party meeting on June 18, Chief Minister Revanth Reddy criticized KCR and Harish Rao for changing their stance on the project.
Harish Rao accused CM Reddy of maliciously distorting statements made by BRS chief K. Chandrashekar Rao (KCR) during the recent Apex Council meeting. "Revanth Reddy's crooked mindset is solely aimed at gaining political mileage, lacking any genuine desire to protect Telangana's water interests," Harish Rao asserted.
He further alleged that CM Reddy deliberately misled the public by concealing agenda item number 5 from the Apex Council meeting, choosing to highlight only agenda item number 1 to deceive the people.
"KCR Garu clearly stated in agenda item 5 that 'under no circumstances should the Godavari-Krishna river interlinking projects proceed without consulting Telangana, and if they do, Telangana will not agree to it'," Harish Rao emphasized.
"By intentionally hiding this crucial fact, Revanth Reddy has presented falsehoods to the public for his selfish political objectives and attempted to mislead the media," Harish Rao added.
The former minister concluded by stating, "The people will not believe Revanth Reddy's theatrics today, which are built on a foundation of lies. He has deliberately not pointed out agenda no 5 in his presentation. A politically motivated narrative is being created by him."
Timeline of opposition to the project:
Telangana irrigation minister Uttam Kumar Reddy gave a timeline of the opposition to the project:
November 2024: Andhra Pradesh chief minister Chandrababu Naidu wrote to the Union Finance Minister seeking Rs 78,039 crores as a special package for the project.
December 2024: Renewed demand under 'Swarnandhra@2047' vision, pushing with a total request of Rs 80,112 crores.
January 2024: The Telangana government lodged formal objections with a letter to the Godavari River Management Board (GRMB). Irrigation Minister Uttam Kumar Reddy wrote to both the Union Jal
Shakti and Finance Ministries, warning that the project would breach the APRA and GWDT Award and demanded denial of financial assistance.
January 24, 2024: The principal secretary of Irrigation addressed GRMB to formally request that AP be restrained from proceeding further.
March 3, 2025: CM Revanth Reddy and Uttam personally met Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat and handed over a letter requesting immediate intervention. April 8, 2025: Andhra Pradesh issued a government order on the project, Telangana government escalated objections.
May 14, 2025: Objections were raised by the Telangana government on May 28 against the project.
June 2025: Telangana government escalated objections, and letters were written to the union government opposing the project strongly. Letters were also addressed to the Ministry of Environment.
June 18: All-party meeting of members of Parliament ended with a unanimous decision to escalate the issue through legal and constitutional channels.
Telangana government is preparing to file a writ petition in the Supreme Court, challenging the legality of the project and seeking a stay on all related proceedings.
The State Government accorded top priority to the protection of the farmersā interests. We should move forward by taking up the farmersā interests as the main agenda beyond politics and work together, said CM Revanth Reddy.
