Mahanadi Row: Odisha Congress Demands Interim Order By Tribunal, Release Of Water In Canals In 7 Days

Bhubaneswar: With the Mahanadi River Water Disputes Tribunal set to begin its field visit in Odisha, Congress on Friday lashed out at the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) government in the state over the issue.

Addressing a press meet in Bhubaneswar, Odisha Prdesh Congress Committee (OPCC) president Sarat Pattanayak and state party campaign committee chairman Bijay Patnaik accused the state government of having failed to take necessary steps to resolve the Mahanadi river water row.

Stating that Mahanadi River Water Disputes Tribunal was formed way back in 2018, Bijay Patnaik said not a single order has been passed during the last five years. The common information format which required for the tribunal’s work to gain momentum is yet to be prepared, he said.

Claiming that there has been 77.7 per cent decline in water inflow in Hirakud dam in May following the construction of barrages by Chhattisgarh, Patnaik said the tribunal needs to give a specific deadline for its verdict.

Keeping in view the acute water crisis during the non-monsoon seasons in Mahanadi river in Odisha, the tribunal should have passed an interim order, the Congress leader said.

Noting that water is yet to be released through canals in Odisha, the Congress leaders also set a deadline for the state government to release water in canals within seven days.

Seeking to know as to why water is not being released through canals for irrigation and other purposes, they said the state government is accountable to the people and it is only making an excuse in the name of the tribunal.

Coming down heavily on the state government, Patnaik claimed that no step has been taken by the state for preserving water by constructing barrages.