Odisha, Chhattisgarh Seek 12-Week Time From Mahanadi Water Disputes Tribunal To Submit Info Ahead Of Hearing Today

Bhubaneswar: Both Odisha and Chhattisgarh have sought 12-week time from Mahanadi Water Disputes Tribunal for submission of their common information formats. The hearing in the tribunal is scheduled to be held on Saturday.

Ahead of the heating, both the states urged the tribunal to allow additional time of 12 weeks to furnish the remaining facts in accordance with the common information format, sources said.

It may be noted here that the Mahanadi River Water Disputes Tribunal had in May this year visited 30 locations in Odisha during its site inspection. The tribunal had earlier completed its field visit to Chhattisgarh in two phases from April 18 to May 3, 2023.

A senior official informed that the Tribunal had conducted site visits in two phases in both states and the case was listed for hearing today. Odisha government has reportedly filed 49 of the 68 common format information.

Information is being gathered on the remaining issues and it will take more time for which 12 weeks are required, the state government informed the tribunal through email. It further informed that affidavit and additional affidavit would be submitted in 16 weeks.

Moreover, there appeared to be a dispute on whether the western catchment is part of Mahanadi basin or not.

The Mahanadi river, India’s sixth-largest, has become the subject of a bitter dispute between the Odisha and Chhattisgarh.

Odisha has been trying hard to convince the tribunal as to why it desperately needs Mahanadi river water for sustenance.

The Odisha government had filed a complaint in 2016 with the Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation (now Ministry of Jal Shakti) raising objection over the construction of six barrages for industrial purpose in the upstream and low flow in downstream especially during the lean period, he said.

In 2018, the Centre constituted a three-member tribunal, comprising Justice AM Khanwilkar of the Supreme Court as the chairman and Justices Dr Ravi Ranjan and Indermeet Kaur Kochhar of Patna and Delhi High Courts respectively as members.

The tribunal was constituted following orders of the Supreme Court in a suit filed by the Odisha government seeking to refer the water dispute regarding Mahanadi river and its river valley to a tribunal for adjudication under the Inter-State River Water Disputes Act, 1956.