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The Central Water Commission (CWC) will hold a meeting between Telangana and Maharashtra on September 1 to discuss technical and inter-State issues related to the proposed Tummidihatti Barrage on the Pranahita River, the Telangana Chief Minister's Office (CMO) said on Thursday.
The meeting will be held at 11 am at Sewa Bhawan in New Delhi under the chairmanship of the CWC Chairman, with senior officials from the Water Resources Departments of both states expected to participate. The meeting comes after sustained efforts by Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy to seek the Centre's intervention in resolving the long-pending issues surrounding the project. According to the CMO, Revanth Reddy had written to Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on May 26, seeking discussions between the two states to find a mutually acceptable solution. The issue was later raised with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, following which the PMO referred the matter to the Ministry of Jal Shakti. The Telangana Chief Minister also wrote to Union Jal Shakti Minister C R Patil on August 5, urging the Centre to facilitate resolution of the inter-State concerns. A key issue to be discussed is the proposed height of the barrage. Telangana has sought construction at a height of 152 metres, while Maharashtra had earlier agreed to a height of 148 metres. The Telangana government has maintained that water availability through gravity flow would not be feasible at 148 metres and that extensive pumping would increase power consumption and create an additional financial burden on the state. The CMO said studies by the Central Water and Power Research Station (CWPRS) indicated that the additional submergence due to raising the water level could be mitigated. The September 1 meeting is expected to provide a platform for both states to address technical concerns and work towards a mutually acceptable solution for advancing the Tummidihatti project, which is aimed at providing irrigation benefits to drought-prone areas of Telangana. (ANI)
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