Water row: PRAWAH river authority to inspect Mhadei basin, says Goa minister

Panaji: Amid the water diversion dispute, the PRAWAH river authority will conduct an inspection of the Mhadei basin in the presence of officials from Goa, Maharashtra and Karnataka from Thursday, Goa minister Subhash Shirodkar said.

The central government constituted the Progressive River Authority for Water and Harmony (PRAWAH) last year to enable the compliance and implementation of the award and decisions of the Mahadayi Water Disputes Tribunal.

The Mhadei river originates in Karnataka and runs through Maharashtra into Goa meeting the Arabian Sea near Panaji.

Goa and Karnataka are locked in a dispute over the diversion of the river water. Goa has filed a petition before the Supreme Court challenging the order of an inter-state water dispute tribunal for sharing the river water.

Members of the PRAWAH committee will visit all the sites, including waterfalls and dams, that would be affected if Karnataka is allowed to divert the river water, Goa Water Resources Minister Shirodkar told PTI.

Officials from Goa, Maharashtra and Karnataka would accompany the PRAWAH members during the inspection, to be held from July 4 to 6, he said.

“We will show the PRAWAH members how Goa’s water resources, including the famous Surla waterfall (located on Karnataka border) would dry out if water is diverted,” the minister said.

They are scheduled to visit the Amthane dam, Anjunem dam, Valvanti river and Uste river on Thursday and the Ganjem dam, Opa river, Cumbharjua canal and Sarmanas (all in North Goa) on Friday, he said.

The panel members will also visit Kankumbi village in Karnataka where the neighbouring state has proposed a dam (to divert the Mhadei river water into the Malaprabha basin), he said.

Shirodkar said the inspection was being carried out following the Goa government’s request.

“The Karnataka government had tried to put spokes in the wheel by trying to delay the inspection, but PRAWAH went ahead with the dates,” the minister claimed.