The Welfare Association of Water Users and Ayacutdars of Andhra Pradesh wrote a letter to Union Minister for Jal Shakti Gajendra Singh Shekhawath, requesting him to take steps to shift the headquarters of the Krishna River Water Management Board (KRMB) to Vijayawada, instead of Visakhapatnam.
In the letter dated October 19, association president Alla Gopala Krishna and others said that it was learnt that the State government informed the KRMB Chairman that 10,000 sq. ft. office space is provided for KRMB in Visakhapatnam, and requested that the KRMB office be shifted from Hyderabad to Visakhapatnam at an early date.
Since inception of the KRMB, several representations had been submitted by the farmers’ welfare organisation that it should be located in Vijayawada on the banks of the Krishna river, which was also geographically centrally located in Andhra Pradesh.
“It is also well connected by road, rail and air for monitoring the various projects located in both States by the officials of KRMB. It is more convenient for the ayacutdars and the final water beneficiaries for apprising their day-to-day issues to KRMB. We are constantly perusing our genuine plea with the authorities of the KRMB for a positive response. The same is awaited,” they said.
Initially, the Andhra Pradesh government had taken a stand to shift the headquarters of KRMB to Vijayawada and made a request to the Union government in 2020. “Even while the KRMB is finalising the premises in Vijayawada, the government informed that the KRMB office will be shifted to Visakhapatnam,” they recalled.
As per Section 85 (2) of the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014, the headquarters of the KRMB shall be located in the successor State of Andhra Pradesh, they said.
“The Telangana government also objected to shifting the KRMB headquarters to Visakhapatnam citing the distance,” they added.
The decision of Andhra Pradesh Government should be re-examined keeping in view the pros and cons of the functional difficulties in monitoring/operation of the projects and its water regulations from a distant place such as Visakhapatnam. “Further, the headquarters should be well within the jurisdiction of the KRMB to do justice / safeguard the rights of ayacutdars,” they added.
