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D.K. Shivakumar urges Karnataka MPs to put pressure on Centre to seek approval to raise Almatti dam height

March 03, 2026 5 min read Polity & Governance Geography GS2 (Federal Relations Governance) GS1 (Geography Rivers)
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What Happened

  • Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar has urged Karnataka's Members of Parliament to pressure the Central Government to approve the proposal to raise the full reservoir level (FRL) of the Almatti Dam on the Krishna River from 519.6 metres to 524.26 metres.
  • Andhra Pradesh has written to the Union Government opposing the height increase and has objected to Karnataka's land acquisition process related to the project, even though the proposal has tribunal and court backing.
  • The Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal-II (headed by Justice Brijesh Kumar) had, in its 2010 award and 2013 final verdict, already permitted Karnataka to raise Almatti's storage level to 524.256 metres.
  • Maharashtra has also raised objections, leaving Karnataka isolated in pressing for Central approval of the gazette notification implementing the tribunal's verdict.
  • Karnataka's State Cabinet in September 2025 resolved to acquire 1.33 lakh acres across a single phase for the project at an estimated cost of ₹70,000 crore spread over three stages.

Static Topic Bridges

Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal and Inter-State Water Sharing

Inter-state river water disputes in India are governed by Article 262 of the Constitution, which empowers Parliament to provide for the adjudication of disputes relating to use, distribution, or control of waters of inter-state rivers. The Inter-State River Water Disputes (ISRWD) Act, 1956, operationalises this by enabling the Central Government to constitute a tribunal when states fail to reach a negotiated settlement. The first Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal (KWDT-I, Bachawat Tribunal) was constituted in 1969 and gave its award in 1976, allocating Krishna waters among Maharashtra, Karnataka, and the then-undivided Andhra Pradesh. Following Andhra Pradesh's bifurcation in 2014 and unresolved disputes, KWDT-II (Justice Brijesh Kumar Tribunal), constituted in 2004, gave its award in 2010 with a final verdict in 2013.

  • KWDT-II allocations (75% dependable flows, ~740 tmc normal year): Andhra Pradesh 1,001 tmc; Karnataka 911 tmc; Maharashtra 666 tmc.
  • Surplus water allocations: AP 194 tmc; Karnataka 173 tmc; Maharashtra 81 tmc.
  • The tribunal specifically permitted Karnataka to raise Almatti Dam from 519.6 m to 524.256 m, directing Karnataka to release 8,000–10,000 million cubic feet (mcft) from the dam to AP in June–July.
  • The Centre has not yet issued the final gazette notification required to implement the tribunal award — a key administrative bottleneck.
  • Telangana's creation in 2014 added complexity, as it seeks reallocation of AP's tribunal-awarded share.

Connection to this news: The Almatti dispute is a live instance of the ISRWD Act mechanism in action — where a tribunal award exists but Centre's gazette notification is pending, demonstrating the political dimensions of implementing inter-state water adjudications.

Almatti Dam — Technical and Hydrological Context

Almatti Dam, also known as the Lal Bahadur Shastri Dam, is located on the Krishna River in Vijayapura (Bijapur) district of Karnataka. It is a major component of the Upper Krishna Project (UKP), designed to provide irrigation water to the drought-prone districts of North Karnataka. The dam is a run-of-river storage structure; raising its FRL from 519.6 m to 524.256 m would increase the live storage capacity substantially, enabling Karnataka to utilise a larger share of its tribunal-allocated 911 tmc. Andhra Pradesh's concern is that higher storage at Almatti would delay downstream flows reaching the Krishna delta (Prakasam Barrage) during critical Kharif season weeks, reducing water availability for its delta agriculture.

  • Krishna River: originates in the Western Ghats (Mahabaleshwar, Maharashtra), flows ~1,400 km through Maharashtra, Karnataka, Telangana, and Andhra Pradesh before joining the Bay of Bengal.
  • Krishna basin area: ~258,948 sq km — one of India's largest river basins.
  • Other major dams on Krishna: Nagarjuna Sagar (AP), Srisailam (AP-Telangana), Jurala (Telangana), Koyna (Maharashtra).
  • A Central committee study concluded that raising Almatti to 524 m would not cause flooding in neighbouring states — a finding Andhra Pradesh contests.
  • Karnataka's irrigation coverage in the drought-prone Kalyana Karnataka region (6 backward districts) depends heavily on Almatti storage.

Connection to this news: Understanding Almatti Dam's location on the Krishna River and the upper-lower riparian dynamics between Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh is essential for answering questions on inter-state water disputes.

Centre's Role in Inter-State River Disputes and Cooperative Federalism

The Union Government plays a critical but often delayed role in inter-state water disputes. Under the ISRWD Act, once a tribunal submits its award, the Central Government is required to publish it in the Gazette of India, after which it has the force of law. However, there is no strict statutory deadline for this publication, creating the current impasse at Almatti. The Supreme Court has been approached in multiple inter-state river disputes (Cauvery, Krishna, Mahanadi) due to implementation failures. The Cauvery dispute resolution led to the creation of the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) in 2018 under Supreme Court directions, demonstrating that institutional oversight bodies may be necessary to implement tribunal awards. The National Water Commission has recommended a more active Central role in operationalising tribunal awards through dedicated implementation bodies.

  • Article 262 bars the Supreme Court from adjudicating inter-state water disputes — though the Court has exercised jurisdiction on implementation matters.
  • The River Boards Act, 1956 provides for constituting boards for regulation and development of inter-state rivers but has been little used.
  • The ISRWD (Amendment) Bill, 2019 introduced measures to reduce tribunal timelines (maximum 3 years + 2 years extension) but did not address gazette notification delays.
  • The Narmada Water Disputes Tribunal award (1979) is considered a model: it detailed release schedules, oustee rehabilitation protocols, and institutional arrangements.

Connection to this news: The stalled gazette notification for KWDT-II illustrates the limits of Centre-state coordination on federal water governance — a recurring UPSC Mains theme under cooperative federalism and institutional reform.

Key Facts & Data

  • Almatti Dam current FRL: 519.6 m; proposed FRL: 524.26 m (increase of ~4.7 m).
  • Project cost: ₹70,000 crore over three phases; 1.33 lakh acres of land acquisition.
  • KWDT-II award: December 2010; final verdict: November 2013; gazette notification pending.
  • Krishna River: ~1,400 km; basin ~2.59 lakh sq km across 4 states (Maharashtra, Karnataka, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh).
  • KWDT-II Karnataka allocation: 911 tmc (75% dependable flow year).
  • Karnataka Cabinet resolution: September 16, 2025 — single-phase land acquisition approved.
  • Central committee finding: raising Almatti to 524 m would not flood neighbouring states.
  • Opposing states: Andhra Pradesh (objection filed with Centre); Maharashtra (also raised objections).