Sharing waters: On the Tungabhadra model

📌 Summary:

• The CMs of Karnataka (D.K. Shivakumar), Telangana (A. Revanth Reddy) and Andhra Pradesh (N. Chandrababu Naidu), with Union Jal Shakti Minister C.R. Patil, jointly inaugurated 33 new spillway gates of the Tungabhadra dam on June 25 and pledged greater inter-State cooperation
• The Tungabhadra dam (Koppal district, Karnataka) is the lifeline of three southern States, irrigating ~16.4 lakh acres (9.26 lakh in Karnataka, 6.25 lakh in AP, 87,000 in Telangana); it has stayed largely dispute-free due to an established water-sharing formula and the Tungabhadra Board''s regulation of releases
• Trigger: in August 2024 a crest gate was washed away during heavy inflows at a full reservoir (105 tmc ft), wasting water; authorities replaced the gates with high-grade steel ones (₹51 crore, ~60-year life)
• Unresolved friction: the Upper Bhadra lift-irrigation project (upstream, central Karnataka) is an irritant for AP and Telangana; the Centre had budgeted ₹5,300 crore (2023-24) but later excluded it from central schemes — it is now built by a Karnataka undertaking
• Siltation has cut storage from the original 133 tmc ft to ~106 tmc ft; the Centre has promised desilting
• Argument/solution: the Union should closely monitor and expedite dam rehabilitation and improvement projects under way in 19 States — the focus must be on prevention, not reparation, since dam-safety laxity can be disastrous

🎯 UPSC Relevance: GS2 — cooperative federalism and inter-State river-water sharing; also water-resource management and dam safety.

📝 Prelims Facts:

• Tungabhadra is a tributary of the Krishna; the dam is in Koppal district, Karnataka
• Storage reduced from 133 tmc ft to ~106 tmc ft due to siltation
• Upper Bhadra is an upstream lift-irrigation project in central Karnataka
• Dam rehabilitation/improvement projects are under way across 19 States

🔑 Key Term: Cooperative federalism — Union and States working collaboratively over shared resources rather than through dispute.