Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government on Wednesday announced the formation of a high-level committee headed by Deputy Chief Minister K V Singh Deo for the resolution of the ongoing Mahanadi River water dispute with Chhattisgarh.
The Committee, constituted under the directions of Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, will look into the whole gamut of issues relating to Mahanadi water dispute and provide guidance to the state’s position before the ongoing proceedings before the national tribunal.
The government constituted the committee in view of the ongoing discussions and proceedings before the Mahanadi Water Disputes Tribunal by the Water Resources Department and considering the complexity and sensitivity of the Mahanadi water issue, a statement from the CMO said.
The Committee, chaired by Singh Deo, has seven members. The panel will examine all relevant aspects related to Mahanadi water and provide necessary policy guidance to the ongoing efforts at the technical and administrative levels of the State.
Members of the Committee are Revenue Minister Suresh Pujari, Law and Works Minister Prithviraj Harichandan, Industries Minister Sampada Chandra Swain, Government Chief Whip Saroj Kumar Pradhan, & MLAs Niranjan Pujari, Jayanarayan Mishra, and Sophia Firdous.
As per sources, the panel will review relevant matters, ongoing steps, and documents being placed before the Tribunal.
It may be noted that the Joint Technical Committee (JTC) meetings between Odisha and Chhattisgarh have been held continuously. At least six JTC meetings took place over the past four months, with another meeting scheduled, officials said.
The technical teams have been reviewing flow data, submissions and compliance aspects under the inter-state mechanism.
Before the technical rounds, Chief Ministers of both states held meetings, followed by interactions between the Chief Secretaries in New Delhi in August and November.
These engagements were aimed at reviewing positions before the Tribunal stages. The next hearing of the Mahanadi Water Disputes Tribunal has been scheduled for December 20.
