Goa govt's plans to meet PM on Mahadayi water dispute scuttled

Panaji/Bengaluru: Goa government’s plan to call on Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking his intervention on the ongoing Mahadayi water-sharing dispute with Karnataka has hit a roadblock due to his packed schedule in the wake of UP elections followed by a foreign trip. 

Goa government had sought appointment with the PM to seek his intervention on transfer of this dispute (between Goa and Karnataka over diversion of Mahadayi water) from ‘Mahadayi Water Dispute Tribunal’ to ‘Inter-State River Disputes Tribunal’.

However, the meeting with the PM may not happen soon as he (PM) is busy with campaigning in Uttar Pradesh after which he would be proceeding on a foreign trip, said Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar. 

“We can’t expect to get an appointment till March 11 with the PM to discuss the issue,” he said. 

Parsekar is of the opinion thatthe dispute case should continue to be heard by MWDT and not transferred to ISRDT. 

“Mahadayi Water Dispute Tribunal was appointed and notified during the tenure of Atal Bihari Vajpayee-led government. The Tribunal has been hearing this case for so long and it has secured much headway into it,” Parsekar told PTI. 

“The Presiding Officer of the Tribunal has also visited Karnataka, Maharashtra and Goa to study the issue. Now the case would be referred to ISRDT which means hearings will start afresh,” the CM said. 

Parsekar said that Goa government has also urged the PMO that Additional Solicitor General Atmaram Nadkarni be allowed to represent Goa in the water dispute case. 

Last month, the Union Ministry for Law and Justice withdrew permission granted to the former State Advocate General (Nadkarni) to represent Goa before the Tribunal, citing a clash of interest.