Chandrababu asks Telangana to abide by rules

Amid growing tension with Telangana over electricity generation, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu Wednesday asked the TRS government not to complicate matters by violating rules and targeting the TDP to hide its inefficiency.

A day after Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) workers set afire the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) office in Nalgonda district of Telangana, Naidu advised the Telangana government to behave responsibly by adhering to rules governing the use of the Srisailam reservoir across the Krishna river.

Stating that power can be generated in the left-side power house only if there was surplus water, Naidu cited the government orders issued in 1996 and 2004 and also the directions given by the Krishna River Management Board.

With the board directing Telangana to abide by the rules, the state government Wednesday wrote back to it, denying that there was any violation of rules.

Irrigation Minister T. Harish Rao said the state will continue power generation as per the rules.

Harish Rao alleged that Naidu, who opposed formation of Telangana state, was now making every effort to deprive Telangana of its due share of water and electricity.

The TDP president, however, said his party was committed to the well being of all Telugu people.

He said that since the TDP has a presence in both the states, it can't act irresponsibly like the TRS.

He even offered to provide 300 megawatt of power to Telangana to help it tide over the crisis.

Naidu said his government will abide by the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, which allotted 54 percent of electricity generated by the existing plants but ruled out a similar share from upcoming projects.

Harish Rao, however, claimed that Telangana was not receiving even its due share from the generating plants in Andhra Pradesh.

He said the Andhra government will have to supply power from even those plants being built with the money of united Andhra Pradesh.