TS, Maharashtra to Cooperate on Irrigation Projects.

The Maharashtra and Telangana governments have decided to cooperate with each other on construction of inter-state irrigation projects.

Respective chief ministers Devendra Gangadharrao Fadnavis and K Chandrasekhar Rao have decided to constitute an expert committee to resolve the pending issues and complete the inter-state projects as early as possible.

They arrived at the understanding at a meeting they held in Mumbai recently.

The chief ministers decided to work as per the agreement reached in 2003 on the Lendi irrigation project. Of the 12 villages to be submerged in Maharashtra under the project, land acquisition was completed in 11 villages and compensation was paid in six villages. The land acquisition process and payment of compensation should be speeded up in other villages too, Rao urged Fadnavis. Rao informed him that the TS government was ready to pay the compensation amount.

Fadnavis assured Rao that the process would be hastened. Rao also agreed to pay the compensation as per the new land acquisition Act for Maharashtra farmers. The TS has already paid Rs. 500 crore towards compensation.

On the lower Penganga project, both agreed to construct three barrages, one in Telangana and two in Maharashtra. As the forest land will be submerged under the lower Penganga project, the chief ministers decided to allocate alternative to forest land.

'As Telangana is a new state, the people have many aspirations. We will maintain cordial relations with neighbouring states according to the aspirations of the people of TS,' Rao told reporters later.


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Rao made it clear that they would not confront neighbouring states and would explore alternative plans and see that the submergence of villages due to irrigation projects would be minimal.

Fadnavis said that his state would pursue the policy of “give and take” with neighbouring states. Rao thanked him for responding to the issues of Telangana in a positive manner.