The Union Cabinet approved the issuance of additional Terms of Reference (ToR) to the existing Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal-II (KWDT-II) under section 5(1) of the ISRWD Act for its adjudication between the States of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh (AP). The decision was based on the legal opinion received and in response to the concerns raised by the Government of Telangana (GoT) in their complaint under section (3) of the Inter State River Water Disputes (ISRWD) Act, 1956.
It was stated that resolving the dispute between the two States regarding the use, distribution, or control of Krishna river waters would create new opportunities for growth in both Telangana and AP. This resolution would benefit the people of both states, contributing to the strengthening of the country.
Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal-II was established by the Central Government on April 2, 2004, following requests made by the party States under Section 3 of the ISRWD Act, 1956. Later, on June 2, 2014, Telangana became a separate State within the Union of India. As per section 89 of the Andhra Pradesh Reorganization Act (APRA), 2014, the tenure of KWDT-II was extended to address the clauses (a) and (b) of the said section of APRA, 2014.
Following this, the Government of Telangana (GoT) lodged a complaint on 14.07.2014 with the Department of Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation (DoWR, RD & GR), Ministry of Jal Shakti (MoJS), Govt. of India, referencing the dispute concerning the use, distribution, or control of Krishna river waters. In 2015, GoT also filed a Writ Petition on this matter in the Hon?ble Supreme Court (SC). In 2018, GoT requested DoWR, RD & GR, MoJS to refer the complaint to the existing KWDT-II, limiting the scope of reference to the States of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh only. This matter was discussed in the 2nd Apex Council meeting in 2020, chaired by the Hon?ble Minister (Jal Shakti). During the meeting, GoT withdrew the aforementioned Writ Petition in 2021. Subsequently, the Department of Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation sought legal opinion from the Ministry of Law & Justice (MoL&J) on the matter.
