NEW DELHI: The Central Government has reconstituted the High-Powered Review Board of the Brahmaputra Board (HPRB) to include representatives from Sikkim and West Bengal.
Formed in 1980, the Brahmaputra Board includes chief ministers of various states, as well as water experts and engineers to address concerns related to the management of the Brahmaputra River and its tributaries, flood control, irrigation, hydropower, development planning, and inter-state water issues in the Brahmaputra and Barak river basins of Northeast India.
The latest notification issued on May 9, from the Ministry of Jal Shakti will supersede earlier notifications from the erstwhile Ministry of Irrigation in 1982 and the Ministry of Water Resources in 1992. With the current notification, the total number of members on the board has increased from 15 to 17, including the chairperson.
The High-Powered Board, headquartered in Guwahati, now includes representatives from the Chief Ministers of Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Tripura, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, nowfrom Sikkim and West Bengal. Other members include the Union Ministers of Finance, Jal Shakti, Power, and Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, as well as the Ministers for Ports, Shipping, and Waterways. Additionally, key members are the Secretary of the Department of Water Resources, the Chairman of the Central Water Commission, and the Chairman of the Brahmaputra Board.
Experts view the inclusion of Sikkim and West Bengalas an indication of India’s shift from state-wise river management to a more holistic approach of river basin management. Historically, Brahmaputra planning focused primarily on Assam and its immediate north-eastern neighbours, with Sikkim regarded more as a Himalayan border state than a stakeholder in Brahmaputra management.
However, India has come to recognize that Sikkim is hydrologically connected to the Brahmaputra system through the Teesta River. Similarly, the Teesta River and other tributaries flow through northern West Bengal before entering Bangladesh. In modern Indian water policy, Himalayan rivers are increasingly treated as interconnected systems rather than isolated state rivers.