Andhra Pradesh, T'gana CMs to meet on June 28 to discuss water issues: Source

The chief ministers of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana would meet "officially" for the first time in almost three years on June 28 here to sort out differences related to water issues, sources close to the development said Tuesday.

In September 2016, Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao and his then Andhra Pradesh counterpart N Chandrababu Naidu had met in the national capital for a meeting convened by then Union water resources minister Uma Bharti on Krishna and Godavari river water related issues and various projects on them.

It's no secret that KCR, as the Telangana chief minister is popularly known, and Naidu don't see eye to eye.

The Jagan Mohan Reddy-led YSRCP swept to power in the recent Assembly poll, dealing a crushing defeat on Naidu. The bonhomie between KCR and Jagan Mohan Reddy, who was sworn-in as Andhra Pradesh chief minister last month, is quite evident amid signs of thaw in relations between the two states.

The Andhra Pradesh chief minister attended the inauguration of Kaleshwaram Irrigation Project built on the Godavari river last week after KCR personally invited him. K Chandrasekhar Rao had also attended the swearing-in ceremony of Jagan Mohan Reddy as chief minister.

"It will be the first official meeting after three years between the two chief ministers on water issues. As there is a cordial atmosphere between the two states, contentious issues are expected to be sorted out amicably. The meeting on water issues will be held on June 28 and both Jagan and KCR are expected to hold one-on-one meeting," a source told PTI.

A meeting between senior officials of irrigation departments of both the states was supposed to be held on June 24 but did not take place as Jagan Mohan Reddy held a conference of district collectors on that day in Andhra Pradesh capital Amaravati.

"The meeting (on June 28) will be mainly on water issues (between the states)," AP Chief Secretary L V Subrahmanyam said.

KCR and Jagan Mohan Reddy met on different occasions during the past one month, during which they are believed to have held informal discussions on several issues. The proposed meeting on June 28 would be the first official one between the two to discuss the contentious issues, sources added.

Several issues arising out of the 2014 bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh, remain unresolved between the two Telugu-speaking states.

The Jagan Mohan Reddy-led Andhra Pradesh government had recently handed over its buildings located here in the secretariat to its Telangana counterpart paving way for the latter to go ahead with the construction of a new one in the location.

According to a White Paper released by the Andhra Pradesh government in December last year, assets worth Rs 1.97 lakh crore, related to government companies and corporations and state institutions, listed under Schedules IX and X of AP Reorganisation Act, 2014 are yet to be distributed between the two states.