PM calls Andhra, Maharashtra chief ministers on Babhali row
By IANSThursday, July 29, 2010
NEW DELHI - Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has called a meeting of chief ministers of Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra Aug 2 to discuss the row over the Babhali dam project between the riverine states, official sources said.
The sources said Thursday that the meeting was aimed at addressing apprehensions among political parties in Andhra Pradesh on Maharashtra not sticking to its commitment about the project following Supreme Court directions.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister K. Rosaiah had Monday led an all-party delegation to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and urged him to direct the Maharashtra government to dismantle the gates installed at the Babhali barrage and take necessary action to put an end to the dispute.
The delegation, which had representatives from all registered political parties in Andhra Pradesh, also urged the prime minister to call a meeting of the chief ministers of the two states to resolve the issue of Babhali barrage and 13 other barrages built on Godavari river, which flows through both states.
Political parties in Andhra Pradesh have accused Maharashtra of carrying out illegal construction on the Babhali barrage against a Supreme Court order, but Maharashtra denies it.
Andhra Pradesh’s opposition Telugu Desam Party (TDP) chief N. Chandrababu Naidu, along with some supporters had earlier this month entered the Maharashtra border district of Nanded in a bid to go to the site of the Babhali barrage.
