The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : Invoke Article 256: Naidu

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Friday, Apr 13, 2007
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

Invoke Article 256: Naidu

Special Correspondent

Says Maharashtra is wantonly defying Centre's orders on Babli

ON THE OFFENSIVE: TDP president N. Chandrababu Naidu talks about Babli issue at a press conference in Hyderabad on Thursday as party leader T. Devender Goud looks on. - PHOTO: Satish H.

HYDERABAD: Telugu Desam Party president N. Chandrababu Naidu on Thursday wanted the Centre to give a direction to Maharashtra under Article 256 of the Constitution relating to compliance with laws and ensure that it stops works at Babli project.

Addressing a press conference, Mr. Naidu said such a direction had become necessary as Maharashtra was wantonly defying the Centre's orders and going ahead with the works.

If the Maharashtra Government still fails to heed, the Centre should exercise its power and not hesitate to take further drastic action to safeguard inter-State relations. He would write a letter in this regard to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

Besides holding an all-party meeting on Friday, he said the party would implead in the case pending between Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra in the Supreme Court. It would also lodge a private complaint against Nanded district Collector and SP for trespassing into the State and beating up party workers.

The inefficiency of the State Government was obvious here too as it did not deploy any senior official to tackle the situation on the Andhra Pradesh border.

Accusing the Centre of favouring Maharashtra, he said the Centre was changing its stand frequently. It was not acting decisively though Babli was being constructed by Maharashtra in violation of inter-State agreement and after exhausting its share of Godavari water.

Not only Babli, it was constructing ten more such barrages to impound Godavari water and lift the same to surrounding areas.

Though the capacity of these barrages was claimed to be 9.05 thousand million cubic feet, the drawal of water would be four times more.

That apart, it was planning to build barrages all through the 450-km river course, one every 45 km, which meant not a drop would trickle down to Sri Ram Sagar Project in future.

Charge against Congress

Yet the State Government, seven Union Ministers, Congress MPs and MLAs remained unmoved and they continue to be reluctant to take it up with UPA chairperson and AICC president Sonia Gandhi.

To build pressure on the Centre, the State Government should utilise the opportunity of Praja Patham programme and ask Zilla and Mandal parishads to adopt resolutions and send them to Delhi, he said.

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