India, Nepal discuss Gandak, Kosi projects in Patna

The 10th meeting of the joint committee on the Kosi and Gandak projects (JCKGP) of India and Nepal, held in Patna on Tuesday, deliberated on the management, protection and maintenance of projects on the two rivers, which wreak havoc with floods every year, and ways to enhance irrigation potential, officials said

The 10th meeting of the joint committee on the Kosi and Gandak projects (JCKGP) of India and Nepal, held in Patna on Tuesday, deliberated on the management, protection and maintenance of projects on the two rivers, which wreak havoc with floods every year, and ways to enhance irrigation potential, officials said.

Gandak river causes floods in Bihar almost every year. (ANI)

An Indo-Nepal agreement on Kosi project was signed in 1954 and amended in 1966, for building, operation and maintenance of Kosi barrage and associated structures. Further, both countries signed a similar agreement on Gandak project in 1959 and amended in 1964. Kosi barrage and Gandak barrage are already built and operational.

The two-day meeting will conclude on Wednesday, said an official of Bihar’s water resources department (WRD).

Sanjay Agarwal, secretary (WRD), headed the Indian delegation while the Nepalese delegation was headed by director general Sushil Chandra Acharya.

The first meeting of the committee was held in 2001 in Kathmandu. Prior to that, there were various coordination committees to deal with the issues related to Kosi and Gandak projects.