Amit Shah Calls Odisha, Chhattisgarh CMs Meet on Mahanadi Dispute

Amit Shah to Chair Meeting of Odisha, Chhattisgarh CMs on October 1 to Resolve Mahanadi Water Dispute

Chief ministers of both states, with chief secretaries and technical committee members, to attend the meeting in New Delhi

Bhubaneswar, Sep 29: Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah has called a meeting of the chief ministers of Odisha and Chhattisgarh on October 1 to settle the long-running Mahanadi water dispute between the two states, Odisha's Advocate General Pitambar Acharya said on Tuesday.

The announcement comes barely 10 days after Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai met Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi during a two-day visit to Bhubaneswar and voiced confidence that the issue would be resolved soon.

Acharya said the chief ministers of both states, along with their chief secretaries and technical committee members, will attend the meeting in New Delhi under Shah's chairmanship. Union Jal Shakti Minister C R Patil will also be present. "The crucial meeting will open doors for resolving the dispute between the two states," he said.

He told reporters that Majhi and Sai had attended a meeting chaired by Patil on July 30, where both agreed to resolve the matter amicably. The Mahanadi Water Dispute Tribunal has also backed the idea of an amicable settlement, while the Central Water Commission (CWC) has been working on the modalities to conclude the matter. After Sai's visit, Majhi had expressed hope of ending the dispute before Diwali.

The dispute over sharing Mahanadi waters has dragged on for more than a decade. Odisha has objected to barrages built upstream in Chhattisgarh, alleging that they reduce downstream flows.

A government official said the basin areas of five rivers, Mahanadi, Godavari, Ganga, Brahmani and Narmada, lie in Chhattisgarh, and 78 per cent of the state's population lives in the Mahanadi basin, which is the state's lifeline.

Odisha had lodged a complaint in 2016 with the Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation (now the Ministry of Jal Shakti), objecting to the construction of six barrages for industrial use upstream and to low downstream flow, especially in the lean season, the official said. In 2018, a tribunal was constituted on the orders of the Supreme Court in Odisha's suit.