Hyderabad: State Irrigation Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy has stated that the Telangana government has sufficient evidence to show that former Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao (KCR) had officially agreed to utilize only 298 TMC (thousand million cubic feet) of water from the Krishna River.
The Minister criticized BRS leader T Harish, accusing him of playing “cheap politics” to divert attention from the alleged injustice faced by Telangana during the previous BRS regime. He claimed that KCR ignored the excessive use of Krishna River water by Andhra Pradesh for the Pothireddypadu head regulator and Rayalaseema lift irrigation projects, which lacked proper approvals for water allocation.
Uttam Kumar Reddy assured that the Congress government is committed to safeguarding Telangana’s water rights. He mentioned that the government is presenting a strong case before the Tribunal to ensure Telangana gets its fair share of water from the Krishna River.
On a separate note, the Minister addressed the issue of ration cards. He announced that the government plans to distribute ration cards to all eligible citizens as part of an ongoing process. Currently, 40 lakh new ration cards are expected to be issued in addition to the existing 60 lakh cards.
Once the ration card distribution is complete, the government will roll out the ‘fine rice’ distribution scheme. This initiative, aimed at providing high-quality rice to families, will require an additional Rs. 11,000 crore annually to implement.
Uttam encouraged people who haven’t yet applied for ration cards to submit their applications during the Prajavani program or at gram sabhas. He assured that all applications received through these platforms will be carefully reviewed to ensure eligible families receive the benefits.
