First ‘official’ meet between Andhra Pradesh, Telangana CMs on water issues on Friday

The first “official” meeting between Chief Ministers of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana is slated to take place on Friday. In almost three years, this will be the first meeting between the Chief Ministers of the states and the leaders are expected to discuss issues related Godavari river water and projects associated with it.

In September 2016, former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao had met in a meeting convened by then Union Minister of Water Resources, Uma Bharti, in the national capital.

This time, the meeting will take place between K Chandrasekhar Rao and newly elected Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy.

Notably, the meeting comes just a week after Jagan Mohan Reddy attended the inauguration of Kaleshwaram Irrigation Project on an invitation by K Chandrasekhar Rao.

News agency PTI had in a recent report quoted a source as saying that the leaders of the two states are expected to sort out contentious issues between Andhra Pradesh and Telangana amicably. The information about the meeting on Friday was confirmed by Andhra Pradesh Chief Secretary LV Subrahmanyam.

While Rao is currently in the second term as Chief Minister of Telangana, Jagan Mohan Reddy was sworn in as the CM of Andhra Pradesh on May 30 after a thumping victory in state Assembly elections.

Reddy’s YSR Congress Party won 151 of the 175 seats in Andhra Pradesh Assembly.