Telangana has constituted a State-level Committee for Integrated Water Planning and Management to monitor the flow in all rivers in the State and to estimate availability of water in them on a seasonal basis. Principal Secretary of Irrigation S.K. Joshi stated in a GO issued on Tuesday that the committee would review and approve the seasonal operational plans for supply of water to various agencies according to allocations made by the government and priorities listed in the State Water Policyprepared by the concerned project authority.
Other functions of the committee include review and approval of adjustments to the seasonal operational plans submitted by the concerned project authorities on the basis of monitoring inflows and outflows into the major irrigation projects on a fortnightly basis, reviewing the performance of the seasonal operational plans and the efficiency in use of irrigation water and its agricultural opportunity costs on the basis of the water audit and benchmarking analysis at the end of the cropping seasons, and making recommendations for improvement.
It will also monitor the flood water flow in Godavari, Krishna and other rivers and plan steps to be taken for flood management during the flood period — from June to November.
It will advise the government on drafting guidelines/standard manuals on related issues.
The nine-member committee to be chaired by the Engineer-in-Chief (Irrigation) will meet during the second fortnight of June and October every year to finalise the Kharif and Rabi operational plans for supply of water to various agencies.
Source: The Hindu