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Will lead Goa delegation to Delhi on Mahadayi issue: CM Pramod Sawant
“The Goa government will not compromise on the Mahadayi river issue. The construction of dams at Kalsa and Bhandura will affect drinking water requirement of the people living in North Goa district,” said chief minister Pramod Sawant
Panaji: Goa chief minister Pramod Sawant on Monday said he will soon lead a delegation of state leaders to New Delhi and urge the Union government to withdraw its approval granted to Karnataka for detailed project reports (DPRs) of two dams on Mahadayi River.
The distribution of the Mahadayi River water has remained a major dispute between Goa and Karnataka for years, with the former opposing the Centre’s decision to allow diversion of 3.9 tmc (thousand million cubic metre) water from Kalasa and Banduri streams that feed the west-flowing Mahadayi in the upper reaches of the Western Ghats.
On Monday, Sawant chaired a special cabinet meeting to draw up a “strategy” to counter the Centre’s clearance to Karnataka for DPRs of two dams on Mahadayi (spelt Mhadei in Goa).
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“The Goa government will not compromise on the Mahadayi river issue,” Sawant told reporters after the cabinet meeting. “The construction of dams at Kalsa and Bhandura will affect drinking water requirement of the people living in North Goa district.”
Later in the day, Sawant also called an all-party meeting, but the opposition parties — including the Congress, the Aam Aadmi Party, the Goa Forward Party and the Revolutionary Goans Party — boycotted it, accusing the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led state government of “sacrificing Goa’s interests” in favour of the party’s electoral prospects in neighbouring Karnataka, which will go to assembly polls in a few months. The opposition parties also accused the chief minister of drawing up the state’s strategy without seeking their inputs.
“The opposition should not create issues for the sake of opposition. Everyone should be united as Mahadayi is a lifeline for us,” Sawant said. “I reiterate, Mahadayi is like a mother to me.”
The chief minister said the cabinet has decided to lead an all-party delegation to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union home minister Amit Shah and Jal Shakti minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat to express opposition to the approval granted for dam DPRs.
“Even though the Mahadayi Water Disputes Tribunal has awarded Karnataka 3.9 tmc to divert to the Malaprabha River Basin, we will pursue this matter in the Supreme Court, where our petition is currently pending, and follow it up rigorously,” Sawant said.
He further said the approval granted for the DPR is an in-principle one as Karnataka will have to get permission from the Union ministry of environment, forests and climate change (MoEF&CC). “This (environment ministry) approval will not be possible as the Mahadayi River runs through a wildlife sanctuary,” Sawant added.
Goa has opposed any diversion of water from Mahadayi, which originates in the Western Ghats in Karnataka, takes a detour via Maharashtra and enters Goa as the Mandovi. The river basin drains an area of 2,032 sqkm, of which 375 sqkm lies in Karnataka, 77 sqkm in Maharashtra and rest in Goa.
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Both the Goa and Karnataka governments have, for different reasons, challenged the Mahadayi Interstate Water Disputes Tribunal’s verdict in August 2018 that granted Karnataka a total of 13.42 thousand million cubic feet of water out of their demand of 36.558 thousand million cubic feet. However, Goa has not opposed Karnataka’s right to use the water within the Mahadayi basin.
While Goa has approached the Supreme Court arguing that Karnataka should not be allowed to divert any water owing to the fact that the Mahadayi river is a water-deficient river, Karnataka is before the Supreme Court arguing that the tribunal erred in granting it 13.42 thousand million cubic feet of water.
The Goa government will also press for the constitution of the Mahadayi Authority, a body consisting of members from the three states — Karnataka, Maharashtra and Goa — that share the river and also include members appointed by the Centre and independent experts to monitor the activities at the site.
“The entire north Goa quenches its thirst with the waters of the Mahadayi. The contention that Goa is just “allowing flow into the sea” is also erroneous as the flow from the hills maintains the salinity levels of the river and we have also doubled the height of the Ganjem reservoir (that supplies water to the state capital Panaji),” Sawant said.
The opposition Congress boycotted the all-party meeting, claiming that Sawant had already taken the decision in morning.
“We were called today to discuss this issue. It is shocking to see that the CM after his cabinet meeting has announced certain decisions on the Mhadei issue. It is completely undemocratic,” alleged leader of opposition Yuri Alemão. “What have you called us for then: To nod our heads like cattle? If you are going to discuss everything during the cabinet... We condemn this attitude of the chief minister.”
The Congress leader also alleged that the state government was “hand in glove with the Union and Karnataka governments” on the issue.
