Vijayawada, Oct 13:
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay met his Andhra Pradesh counterpart N Chandrababu Naidu at his residence in Vijayawada on Tuesday to discuss inter-State water-sharing issues, including the release of Krishna river water to meet Chennai’s drinking water requirements.
Vijay travelled to Andhra Pradesh for the meeting, accompanied by Tamil Nadu Ministers N Anand and Aadhav Arjuna, among others. Naidu’s son and Andhra Pradesh Minister Nara Lokesh and Minister Vishnu Reddy welcomed the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister on his arrival.
The meeting assumed significance as Tamil Nadu has been seeking the release of its pending allocation of Krishna water under the Telugu Ganga Project. Under the agreement, Andhra Pradesh is required to supply 12 thousand million cubic feet (TMC) of Krishna water annually to Tamil Nadu to help meet Chennai’s drinking water needs.
Tamil Nadu had received only around 2.251 TMC of water as of October 9, falling well short of its annual allocation. The State has been pressing Andhra Pradesh to release the remaining quantity amid concerns over drinking water availability in Chennai and its surrounding areas.
The discussions were also expected to cover the proposed Godavari-Krishna-Cauvery river-linking project, which could have implications for the long-term water security of Tamil Nadu and other southern States.
Vijay’s visit marked an important step in direct engagement between the two State governments on water management and resource-sharing concerns. The Chief Minister was also scheduled to visit the Kanaka Durga temple and attend events associated with Vijayawada Utsav 2.0 before returning to Chennai.