River InterlinkingNews
Jan, 24, 2019
Govt. plans Godavari-Cauvery interlinking
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Godavari-Cauvery interlinking project
Enhancing cargo transport with the help of Inland Waterways
News
Union Ministry for Road Transport and Highways, Shipping and Water Resources has revealed Detailed Project Report (DPR) to take the backwaters of the Godavari up to the Cauvery river in Tamil Nadu.
Godavari-Cauvery Interlinking
The DPR for the river inter-linking project has already been prepared and is in the process of being submitted to the Cabinet. It is estimated to cost ₹60,000 crore.
1,100 tmcft of the backwater of the Godavari river was going into the sea and there was a dispute between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu over 45 tmcft of it.
To solve the crisis, the Centre has decided to link up the above rivers.
Once the Cabinet gives its nod, funds will be raised from the World Bank or the Asian Development Bank.
It will mitigate the scarcity of water in A.P., Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu.
It was former PM Vajpayee who conceived the idea of linking rivers from Ganga to Cauvery.
Benefits of the Project
The backwaters will be carried through Krishna and Penna using steel pipes instead of developing canals en route as suggested by a non-resident engineer from Andhra Pradesh.
By doing so, wastage of water from canals could be prevented and overall cost reduced.
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Oct, 21, 2017
A flood of questions
Mains Paper 1: Changes in critical geographical features (including waterbodies and ice-caps) and in flora and fauna and the effects of such changes.
Prelims: Ken-Betwa river linking project.
River linking is a important topic for mains and this article highlights various issues that must be resolved before investing billions in river linking projects and also suggests solutions for the same.
News
Context
The government is all set to begin work on an estimated $87 billion plan to connect around 60 of India’s largest rivers; this includes the Ganga.
Once complete, it is expected to help end farmers’ dependence on fickle monsoon rains, bring millions of hectares of cultivable land under irrigation and help generate thousands of megawatts of electricity.
Water Management
The river-linking plan was first proposed in 2002.
However, it was stalled as States failed to end differences over water sharing contracts and clearances.
Work is now set to link the Betwa and Ken rivers which pass through Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.
Issues involved in river linking project
Water is listed as entry 17 in List II of the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution. The government has initiated discussions to bring the subject under the concurrent list, it may not be an easy task to achieve.
If there are changes in the political dispensation in various States, the government in a State that is upstream, for example, may refuse to share water with downstream States.
When there has been a deficient monsoon, we have seen conflicts arise among States over water access.
Thus, a full-fledged architecture is needed to solve disputes, it would not be prudent to embark on a mammoth project like this.
India is technically poor with respect to data related to the water sector.
Unlike other countries, the Central Statistics Office has neither attempted nor funded studies to gather data on water tables at an all-India or State level.
Way Forward
Water Resource accounting at national and regional level
It provides an accounting framework that enables the integration of specialised physical resource sector data with other information on the economics of water supply .
It also provides the basis for evaluating the consistency between the objectives and priorities of water resource management and broader goals of economic development planning and policy at a national and local scale.
This in turn improves communication between various agencies generating and using information about water for various purposes and contributes to better coordination, packaging and analyses of such information that are more relevant to the needs of water managers and policy-makers.
It also makes it possible to capture direct, indirect and induced water demand in the process of economic production.
It further helps in estimating the water balance situation in a region.
Agricultural context
The government should pay more attention to its ‘more crop per drop’ mission and water-stressed regions should not become water exporters due to the crops they cultivate.
There is a dearth of studies in the Indian context unlike other countries addressing the gap by first analysing water flows embodied (virtual/hidden) in agriculture products moving between the States to create knowledge on the flows.
A well informed water policy will help to close governance gap.
A recent study on virtual water (VW) flow assessment in respect of foodgrains indicates that though the north zone is highly water scarce, it is a net VW exporter to the highly water scarce west and south, which are net VW importers.
Among the north zone States, Punjab has the highest water losses, while Maharashtra (west) and Tamil Nadu (south) the highest water savings in 1996–2005 and 2005–2014, respectively.
Therefore, at a subnational scale, VW flows are not consistent with relative water scarcity.
Such analysis for all the major crops at subnational levels is a must for efficient planning of a scarce resource such as water.
Back2basics
About Ken-Betwa ILR project The Ken-Betwa ILR project aims to transfer surplus water from the Ken River to the Betwa basin through concrete canal to irrigate India’s worst drought-prone Bundelkhand region.
The 221-km concrete canal will pass through Jhansi, Banda and Mahoba districts of Uttar Pradesh and Chhatarpur, Panna and Tikamgarh districts of Madhya Pradesh.
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Nov, 14, 2016
Ken-Betwa project hangs on forest nod II
The main feature of the project is a 230-km canal and a series of barrages and dams connecting the Ken and the Betwa
Purpose: To irrigate 3.5 lakh hectares in Madhya Pradesh and 14,000 hectares in the Bundelkhand region of Uttar Pradesh
The key components are the Makodia and the Dhaudhan dams
The Ken-Betwa project is the template for the Union government’s stated plan to transfer water across river basins
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Nov, 14, 2016
Ken-Betwa project hangs on forest nod I
What: The Rs. 9,000-crore Ken-Betwa river-interlinking project, which will partly submerge the Panna tiger reserve
It has been delayed after a key Environment Ministry body tasked with giving it forest clearance has deferred it at least until January
Core forest: The project will submerge 6,221 hectares of land— 4,141 hectares of it is core forest inside the reserve
The Forest Advisory Committee’s clearance is required for this diversion of forest land
Depending on whether a project takes over land in wildlife sanctuaries or notified forest land, it requires separate wildlife, forest and environment clearances
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Sep, 21, 2016
What about Tiger habitat after river link?
News: The The Ken-Betwa river linking project has got the approval of the standing committee of the National Board for Wildlife
Projects that specifically eat into tiger habitats need a positive recommendation from the National Tiger Conservation Authority on the basis of which the standing committee of the National Board for Wildlife accords the wildlife clearance
The Tiger Authority has recommended that other nearby tiger-bearing areas be classified as tiger reserve to compensate for the loss
These include Nauradehi Wildlife Sanctuary, Rani Durgavati Wildlife Sanctuary (both in Madhya Pradesh) and Ranipur Wildlife Sanctuary in Uttar Pradesh
The effort to integrate the three wildlife sanctuaries within the Panna Tiger Reserve will be undertaken simultaneously
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Sep, 21, 2016
Wildlife panel okays Ken-Betwa river link
News: The The Ken-Betwa river linking project has got the approval of the standing committee of the National Board for Wildlife
Impact: The project would submerge about 100 sq km of the Panna Tiger Reserve in Madhya Pradesh, one of the country’s prime tiger habitats
Environment minister: India should go ahead with at least one inter-linking of river project to assess its consequences
Union water resources minister Uma Bharti, too, had threatened to go on hunger strike if the project did not get approval soon
Recently, linking of which of the following rivers was undertaken? [Prelims 2016]
(a) Cauvery and Tungabhadra
(b) Godavari and Krishna
(c) Mahanadi and Sone
(d) Narmada and Tapti
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Aug, 09, 2016
River-linking to cost Rs. 5-lakh crore
Govt expects to spend a massive Rs 5,60,000 crore on various river interlinking (ILR) projects
It’s roughly 4% of India’s economy, now valued at Rs 1,35,00,000 crore, and significantly more than what India spends on either scientific research, the social sector or defence
This is only a projection and not timebound as none of these projects are underway and costs could be dramatically revised
The National Water Development Agency: The central agency that plans and prepares cost estimates for such projects
It has so far identified 16 peninsular rivers and 14 Himalayan rivers that could potentially be linked to transfer water
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Apr, 22, 2016
River linking to address drought, water scarcity
Context: Union Minister H.N. Ananth Kumar on river linking to address drought and water scarcity
Water grid: Linking rivers across the State would create a water grid that would end droughts and ensure constant supply of abundant water to all regions
Example: Successful linking of Krishna and Godavari to transfer 80 tmcft of water from the Krishna Basin to the Godavari Basin has brought water to dry areas in that State
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Apr, 22, 2015
Panel to take a fresh look at all proposed river links
Why a fresh look? To evaluate their feasibility, particularly in maintaining a balance between environment and development.
Intra-basin transfer of waters is also very important. The rainfall distribution in the country, even within a State, was uneven.
Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Rajasthan are some of the “tail end” states.
The National Water Development Agency proposal was to link major river systems where surpluses from the Godavari & Mahanadi were intended to be transferred to deficit areas in the south.
Jan, 24, 2019
Govt. plans Godavari-Cauvery interlinking
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Godavari-Cauvery interlinking project
Enhancing cargo transport with the help of Inland Waterways
News
Union Ministry for Road Transport and Highways, Shipping and Water Resources has revealed Detailed Project Report (DPR) to take the backwaters of the Godavari up to the Cauvery river in Tamil Nadu.
Godavari-Cauvery Interlinking
The DPR for the river inter-linking project has already been prepared and is in the process of being submitted to the Cabinet. It is estimated to cost ₹60,000 crore.
1,100 tmcft of the backwater of the Godavari river was going into the sea and there was a dispute between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu over 45 tmcft of it.
To solve the crisis, the Centre has decided to link up the above rivers.
Once the Cabinet gives its nod, funds will be raised from the World Bank or the Asian Development Bank.
It will mitigate the scarcity of water in A.P., Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu.
It was former PM Vajpayee who conceived the idea of linking rivers from Ganga to Cauvery.
Benefits of the Project
The backwaters will be carried through Krishna and Penna using steel pipes instead of developing canals en route as suggested by a non-resident engineer from Andhra Pradesh.
By doing so, wastage of water from canals could be prevented and overall cost reduced.
Share this:
(Opens in new window)
Oct, 21, 2017
A flood of questions
Mains Paper 1: Changes in critical geographical features (including waterbodies and ice-caps) and in flora and fauna and the effects of such changes.
Prelims: Ken-Betwa river linking project.
River linking is a important topic for mains and this article highlights various issues that must be resolved before investing billions in river linking projects and also suggests solutions for the same.
News
Context
The government is all set to begin work on an estimated $87 billion plan to connect around 60 of India’s largest rivers; this includes the Ganga.
Once complete, it is expected to help end farmers’ dependence on fickle monsoon rains, bring millions of hectares of cultivable land under irrigation and help generate thousands of megawatts of electricity.
Water Management
The river-linking plan was first proposed in 2002.
However, it was stalled as States failed to end differences over water sharing contracts and clearances.
Work is now set to link the Betwa and Ken rivers which pass through Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.
Issues involved in river linking project
Water is listed as entry 17 in List II of the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution. The government has initiated discussions to bring the subject under the concurrent list, it may not be an easy task to achieve.
If there are changes in the political dispensation in various States, the government in a State that is upstream, for example, may refuse to share water with downstream States.
When there has been a deficient monsoon, we have seen conflicts arise among States over water access.
Thus, a full-fledged architecture is needed to solve disputes, it would not be prudent to embark on a mammoth project like this.
India is technically poor with respect to data related to the water sector.
Unlike other countries, the Central Statistics Office has neither attempted nor funded studies to gather data on water tables at an all-India or State level.
Way Forward
Water Resource accounting at national and regional level
It provides an accounting framework that enables the integration of specialised physical resource sector data with other information on the economics of water supply .
It also provides the basis for evaluating the consistency between the objectives and priorities of water resource management and broader goals of economic development planning and policy at a national and local scale.
This in turn improves communication between various agencies generating and using information about water for various purposes and contributes to better coordination, packaging and analyses of such information that are more relevant to the needs of water managers and policy-makers.
It also makes it possible to capture direct, indirect and induced water demand in the process of economic production.
It further helps in estimating the water balance situation in a region.
Agricultural context
The government should pay more attention to its ‘more crop per drop’ mission and water-stressed regions should not become water exporters due to the crops they cultivate.
There is a dearth of studies in the Indian context unlike other countries addressing the gap by first analysing water flows embodied (virtual/hidden) in agriculture products moving between the States to create knowledge on the flows.
A well informed water policy will help to close governance gap.
A recent study on virtual water (VW) flow assessment in respect of foodgrains indicates that though the north zone is highly water scarce, it is a net VW exporter to the highly water scarce west and south, which are net VW importers.
Among the north zone States, Punjab has the highest water losses, while Maharashtra (west) and Tamil Nadu (south) the highest water savings in 1996–2005 and 2005–2014, respectively.
Therefore, at a subnational scale, VW flows are not consistent with relative water scarcity.
Such analysis for all the major crops at subnational levels is a must for efficient planning of a scarce resource such as water.
Back2basics
About Ken-Betwa ILR project The Ken-Betwa ILR project aims to transfer surplus water from the Ken River to the Betwa basin through concrete canal to irrigate India’s worst drought-prone Bundelkhand region.
The 221-km concrete canal will pass through Jhansi, Banda and Mahoba districts of Uttar Pradesh and Chhatarpur, Panna and Tikamgarh districts of Madhya Pradesh.
Share this:
(Opens in new window)
Nov, 14, 2016
Ken-Betwa project hangs on forest nod II
The main feature of the project is a 230-km canal and a series of barrages and dams connecting the Ken and the Betwa
Purpose: To irrigate 3.5 lakh hectares in Madhya Pradesh and 14,000 hectares in the Bundelkhand region of Uttar Pradesh
The key components are the Makodia and the Dhaudhan dams
The Ken-Betwa project is the template for the Union government’s stated plan to transfer water across river basins
Share this:
(Opens in new window)
Nov, 14, 2016
Ken-Betwa project hangs on forest nod I
What: The Rs. 9,000-crore Ken-Betwa river-interlinking project, which will partly submerge the Panna tiger reserve
It has been delayed after a key Environment Ministry body tasked with giving it forest clearance has deferred it at least until January
Core forest: The project will submerge 6,221 hectares of land— 4,141 hectares of it is core forest inside the reserve
The Forest Advisory Committee’s clearance is required for this diversion of forest land
Depending on whether a project takes over land in wildlife sanctuaries or notified forest land, it requires separate wildlife, forest and environment clearances
Share this:
(Opens in new window)
Sep, 21, 2016
What about Tiger habitat after river link?
News: The The Ken-Betwa river linking project has got the approval of the standing committee of the National Board for Wildlife
Projects that specifically eat into tiger habitats need a positive recommendation from the National Tiger Conservation Authority on the basis of which the standing committee of the National Board for Wildlife accords the wildlife clearance
The Tiger Authority has recommended that other nearby tiger-bearing areas be classified as tiger reserve to compensate for the loss
These include Nauradehi Wildlife Sanctuary, Rani Durgavati Wildlife Sanctuary (both in Madhya Pradesh) and Ranipur Wildlife Sanctuary in Uttar Pradesh
The effort to integrate the three wildlife sanctuaries within the Panna Tiger Reserve will be undertaken simultaneously
Share this:
(Opens in new window)
Sep, 21, 2016
Wildlife panel okays Ken-Betwa river link
News: The The Ken-Betwa river linking project has got the approval of the standing committee of the National Board for Wildlife
Impact: The project would submerge about 100 sq km of the Panna Tiger Reserve in Madhya Pradesh, one of the country’s prime tiger habitats
Environment minister: India should go ahead with at least one inter-linking of river project to assess its consequences
Union water resources minister Uma Bharti, too, had threatened to go on hunger strike if the project did not get approval soon
Recently, linking of which of the following rivers was undertaken? [Prelims 2016]
(a) Cauvery and Tungabhadra
(b) Godavari and Krishna
(c) Mahanadi and Sone
(d) Narmada and Tapti
Share this:
(Opens in new window)
Aug, 09, 2016
River-linking to cost Rs. 5-lakh crore
Govt expects to spend a massive Rs 5,60,000 crore on various river interlinking (ILR) projects
It’s roughly 4% of India’s economy, now valued at Rs 1,35,00,000 crore, and significantly more than what India spends on either scientific research, the social sector or defence
This is only a projection and not timebound as none of these projects are underway and costs could be dramatically revised
The National Water Development Agency: The central agency that plans and prepares cost estimates for such projects
It has so far identified 16 peninsular rivers and 14 Himalayan rivers that could potentially be linked to transfer water
Share this:
(Opens in new window)
Apr, 22, 2016
River linking to address drought, water scarcity
Context: Union Minister H.N. Ananth Kumar on river linking to address drought and water scarcity
Water grid: Linking rivers across the State would create a water grid that would end droughts and ensure constant supply of abundant water to all regions
Example: Successful linking of Krishna and Godavari to transfer 80 tmcft of water from the Krishna Basin to the Godavari Basin has brought water to dry areas in that State
Share this:
(Opens in new window)
Apr, 22, 2015
Panel to take a fresh look at all proposed river links
Why a fresh look? To evaluate their feasibility, particularly in maintaining a balance between environment and development.
Intra-basin transfer of waters is also very important. The rainfall distribution in the country, even within a State, was uneven.
Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Rajasthan are some of the “tail end” states.
The National Water Development Agency proposal was to link major river systems where surpluses from the Godavari & Mahanadi were intended to be transferred to deficit areas in the south.
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