2 TN ministers meet AP CM, seek Krishna water for Chennai

Two Tamil Nadu ministers on Friday met Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy, seeking release of water from Krishna river to Chennai to overcome the grave drinking water scarcity in the city.

Ministers S P Velumani and D Jayakumar handed over a letter to Reddy on behalf of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K Palaniswami, requesting immediate release of drinking water through the Telugu Ganga canal.

"Earlier, there was a dearth of storage and they were unable to release water. Today the situation is favourable as there is good inflow into Srisailam dam," Municipal Administration Minister Velumani told reporters at Chennai airport.

He said they raised the request at the right time and the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister immediately agreed to it, as per which eight tmcft of water for the July-October period would be released.

A release from Reddy's office said the Chief Minister directed the Water Resources Department authorities to ensure water release immediately.

As per the agreement between Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, the former normally releases at least two tmcft of water to meet Chennai's drinking water needs, official sources said.