BHUBANESHWAR: After announcing in the state assembly that the Odisha government will take action on administrative and legal fronts to resolve the Mahanadi river water dispute, chief minister Naveen Patnaik today sought the intervention of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to solve the issue.
In a move which seems to be a climb down from his earlier stand, the Chief Minister said the Prime Minister can resolve the issue if he wants. Besides, there will also be no need for taking legal action by the Odisha government in the matter if the Prime Minister intervened in the matter, Naveen said in a letter.
The Chief Minister said good relations between the two states are necessary to strengthen the federal system of the country. He, however, requested the Prime Minister to ask the Chhattisgarh government to stop construction activities in the upper catchment of Mahanadi river.
Naveen in his proposal, considered to be a fresh move after the failure of the tripartite discussion at New Delhi to resolve the issue, said Odisha will accept an arrangement in which the water flow in Mahanadi river will of 1960 level.
The chief minister had earlier rejected the expert committee set up by the Centre to look into the issue.
However, the chief minister had come in for strong criticism from the opposition Congress and BJP in the assembly for politicising the issue. Leader of the opposition Narasingh Mishra had announced a team of Congress MLAs will meet President Pranab Mukherjee to seek his intervention to resolve the dispute.