The Krishna water-sharing dispute between the two Telugu states has hit a fresh deadlock. A three-member committee meeting of Krishna River Management Board (KRMB) comprising its Member-Secretary and Engineers-in-Chief of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana held in Hyderabad on Friday failed to reach consensus on sharing for 2026-27.
The core issue is the ratio. Andhra Pradesh insists on continuing the ad-hoc 66:34 [AP:Telangana] arrangement agreed for 2015-16, while Telangana has demanded 50% share since 2020. El Nino-induced poor inflows have made the dispute sharper, with both states now only seeking 47 tmc ft each for drinking needs till October-end.
Both states accuse each other of unauthorized withdrawals from the two common reservoirs - Srisailam and Nagarjunasagar. After the August 24 committee meeting, AP started drawing water from Nagarjunasagar Right Canal unilaterally despite Telangana's opposition. Telangana retaliated by releasing water to the Left Canal.
According to sources, KRMB is planning a full-fledged meeting with state secretaries and Chairman to end the impasse. But institutionally, KRMB has struggled to enforce compliance post-bifurcation. With both sides resorting to unilateral draws, its authority is under question.
With monsoon deficit and drinking water security of crores at stake, the political deadlock has real human cost. Without a formula based on scientific inflow assessment and tribunal allocation, the annual fight will repeat.