Odisha Declines AP’s Request For Publication Of Vansadhara Water Disputes Tribunal In Official Gazette

Bhubaneswar: The Odisha Government has declined to agree to the request of Andhra Pradesh to grant any consent in the publication of Vansadhara Water Disputes Tribunal in the official Gazette, subject to finalization of the SLP in the Supreme Court, clarified the Water Resources department.

The decision of Vansadhara Water Disputes Tribunal is sub judice in the Supreme Court.

The Vansadhara Water Disputes Tribunal (VWDT) had pronounced its final order on September 13, 2017, wherein the Tribunal had allowed construction of Neradi Barrage on the river Vansadhara by the Andhra Pradesh.

However, the Odisha had immediately filed a SLP before the Supreme Court on December 12, 2017, against the final order of the Vansadhara Water Dispute Tribunal based on the grounds that the Tribunal has overlooked the important conditions laid down in the various inter-State Agreements held between the states of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh.

In view of the pending SLP in the Supreme Court, the order of the Tribunal cannot be published in the official Gazette under Section 6(1) of the inter-State River Water Dispute Act,1956, which is essential for operationalization of order of the Tribunal, Odisha stated.

Senior advocate Gopal Subramanium is defending the case of the state of Odisha in the Supreme Court.