Hyderabad: Projecting a grim picture of water resources management in the country, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on June 16 urged the Centre to increase allocations and take up irrigation projects in a big way as states alone could not mobilise resources needed for them.

"The Central government should help the states in a big way as it is the joint responsibility of the Centre and states to harness water resources for the benefit of people," Naidu said while inaugurating a three- day international workshop on 'Urban lakes: Conservation and Management" in Hyderabad.

Stating that at Least 14 states in the country were in the grip of acute drought, he wanted the Centre to take up some of the pending major irrigation projects as national projects instead of keeping itself off the sector on the ground that water was a state subject.

Responding to an earlier appeal by Planning Commission member Sompal who wanted Naidu to use his 'clout' at the Centre to increase spending on water resources, the Chief Minister said, "We all will put pressure on government of India to investment more on harnessing water resources".

Welcoming the ambitious proposal to network rivers across the country, he said since the project was time consuming the Centre should first increase allocations and help states take up important irrigation projects.

PTI