Haryana chief minister Nayab Singh Saini on Wednesday asked the Union water resources minister, CR Patil, to expedite the Kishau Dam project, seeking the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) among neighbouring states at the earliest. A meeting chaired by Patil and attended by Saini and his Rajasthan counterpart Bhajan Lal Sharma to discuss interstate water issues was held in New Delhi on Wednesday.
An official spokesperson said the Union minister directed that a meeting be held with officials from Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Haryana, Delhi and Rajasthan regarding the Kishau Dam project.
Patil said that decisions related to water sharing and electricity generation from the dam should be finalised promptly. Thereafter, a meeting of the chief ministers should be convened soon to complete the formalities related to the MoU.
Saini said that the dam project is important for all the states as it will provide a substantial quantity of water. He said the project would benefit all the participating states. The spokesperson said that the Haryana CM also discussed bringing water from the Upper Ganga Canal in Uttar Pradesh for Faridabad and Palwal districts. He requested the Union jal shakti minister’s intervention to expedite the implementation of the scheme.
Officials said that the proposed Hathnikund (Yamuna) Rajasthan pipeline and the issue of sharing of Yamuna water with Rajasthan were also discussed during the meeting. The Upper Yamuna River Board had decided to allocate 1,917 cusecs of water at Tajewala in Yamuna Nagar during the monsoon period from four months of July to October provided Haryana gets 24,000 cusecs and Uttar Pradesh gets 4,000 cusecs. As per the understanding, water in excess of 28,000 cusecs can be routed to Rajasthan using underground pipes.
{{/usCountry}}Officials said that the proposed Hathnikund (Yamuna) Rajasthan pipeline and the issue of sharing of Yamuna water with Rajasthan were also discussed during the meeting. The Upper Yamuna River Board had decided to allocate 1,917 cusecs of water at Tajewala in Yamuna Nagar during the monsoon period from four months of July to October provided Haryana gets 24,000 cusecs and Uttar Pradesh gets 4,000 cusecs. As per the understanding, water in excess of 28,000 cusecs can be routed to Rajasthan using underground pipes.
{{/usCountry}}The meeting also included discussions on the ₹2,000 crore project related to supplying water from the Munak canal to Gurugram and Nuh districts. Discussions were also held on issues related to Rajasthan concerning the RRTS project. The issue of waterlogging in Najafgarh was also discussed.