“I assure each one of you that I will put my best efforts forward and leave no stone unturned in the fight for the rights of the people of our state”, said Patnaik before leaving for New Delhi for a tripartite meeting on Saturday on the issue with his Chhattigarh counterpart Raman Singh and Union Water Resources Minister Uma Bharati. The nature has given so much water to Mahanadi that there is no question of any dispute.
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“All the gates are open during rain”. There will be enough water in the Mahanadi to fill the Hirakud dam seven times over even after these barrages are built. I don’t think there is any issue of Mahanadi water between Chhattisgarh and Odisha.
In its bid to resolve the dispute between the two States, the Centre had convened a joint meeting in New Delhi on July 29, which was attended by Chief Secretaries of both Odisha and Chhattisgarh. Mahanadi is a connecting river between Chhattisgarh and Odisha.
Besides, the Departments of Agriculture, Panchayati Raj and ST and SC Development departments have set up 12,500 check dams since 2010, the Chief Minister, who is also in charge of the water resources department, said.
It has also further cited that the Chief Minister had also replied a year ago to a query of BJP MLA from Brajrajnagar seeking to know the status of construction of barrages by Chhattisgarh on the upper catchment of Mahanadi. On its part, Chhattisgarh has said that it has adhered to the water sharing norms.
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The Odisha government has also been demanding setting up of a tribunal to look into the issue of water-sharing, arguing that it was a central government project and therefore the Centre must take a call on the issue in national interest. Chhattisgarh however, claimed that the state hasn’t been drawing any more water than it is supposed to, suggesting that the barrages do not obstruct the flow of Mahanadi.
