Nine-Yr After Division, TS And AP Still On Warpath Over Thorny Bifurcation Issues

HYDERABAD: Nine years after the division of Andhra Pradesh and formation of Telangana State on June 2, 2014, many post-bifurcation issues between the Telugu states remain unresolved.

The Centre has convened 29 meetings between the two states in the last nine years but failed to resolve contentious issues like division of assets of common institutions located in Hyderabad and Krishna water allocation, among others.
The Centre-initiated meetings have been ending inconclusive with both states sticking to their guns and refusing to budge on the division of assets and bank reserves of common institutions listed under Schedule IX and X of AP Reorganisation Act, 2014. They are mostly located in Hyderabad.

The political rivalry between Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao and his Andhra Pradesh counterpart N. Chandrababu Naidu was attributed for the lack of any consensus. After Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy succeeded Naidu in May 2014, relations appeared to have improved between TS and AP with both the CMs meeting frequently to resolve bifurcation issues. Rao even held a special two-day meeting with AP officials in January 2020, which was attended by Jagan Reddy also.

The two exhibited unusual bonhomie by meeting over six times in less than eight months. They discussed construction of joint projects over the Godavari to meet irrigation and drinking water needs of both the states and mutually utilise the surplus water in Godavari. However, the bonhomie was short-lived after Jagan issued orders in May 2020 to construct RLIS over Krishna to divert water. Soon thereafter, both states filed cases in courts and tribunals accusing each other of taking up illegal projects on the Krishna. There have been no meetings between the two since then.

In the meetings chaired by the Centre, the AP government is demanding a share of the land parcels, share in AP Bhavan in Delhi, buildings and bank reserves of common institutions that are located in Hyderabad, a division proportionate to their respective population. The TS government is opposed to it, stating that it owns the assets located in the new state.

The Telangana government has voiced its resentment at the AP government frequently approaching courts, posing legal challenges, and blocking the division of these institutions for the last nine years. It is demanding that the Centre direct AP to withdraw the cases and facilitate an amicable division of institutions.

The AP government is demanding a share in 5,000 acres of Deccan Infrastructure Limited (DIL) lands and 238 acres of the AP State Finance Corporation (APSFC) in Ranga Reddy and the city outskirts, which were taken back by the Telangana government in 2015 on the ground that the lands were not being utilised by DIL and APSFC.

AP demanded share in assets, buildings, and bank reserves of the AP Dairy Development Corporation, AP State Council of Higher Education, while TS officials agreed to share only bank reserves of Schedule X institutions as per previous orders of the Centre which AP has bluntly refused.

Additionally, AP wants the division of Singareni Collieries Company Ltd (SCCL) and its AP-based subsidiary, AP Heavy Machinery Engineering Ltd (APHMEL). Telangana vehemently maintains that since the Act contains an explicit provision transferring the 51 per cent of equity to Telangana entirely, the division of SSCL does not occur. Similarly, APHMEL is merely an SCCL subsidiary, and the only division which is to be done is that of the equity of the then Andhra Pradesh.

TS and AP government are also on a warpath over cash credit amount due to AP State Civil Supplies Corporation for the TS Civil Supplies Corporation, release of rice subsidy, bifurcation of 12 institutions that were not mentioned anywhere in the Act, division of cash and bank balance (funds under central sponsored schemes/expenditure incurred by TS government on common institutions located in Hyderabad after bifurcation of state and loans related to externally aided projects).

The Telangana government is fuming at the Centre for the inordinate delay in release of funds for the development of backward districts in Telangana, establishment of a tribal university, rail coach factory at Kazipet, and the elimination of taxation anomalies as promised in the AP Reorganisation Act, 2014.