BENGALURU: The Yettinahole project proposes to transfer water from the west-flowing Nethravathi river to east-flowing river basins. In any such project, a transparent approach to planning and implementation is essential. Sadly, a project involving more than Rs.15,000 crore of tax payers’ money is being implemented to meet the political compulsions of some individuals.
The project’s hydrological study is based on unreliable, private coffee planters’ rainfall data and not on Indian Meteorological Department data. It is unfortunate that the National Institute of Hydrology (NIH) indicated water availability on the basis of unreliable data.
Karnataka Neeravari Nigam Limited, the project proponent, and the NIH have failed to establish any difference between dependable yield and divertible yield!
KNNL says divertible yield available is 24 tmc ft while NIH says dependable yield is 50 per cent of 22.48 tmc ft. Many hydrology experts have concluded that the water yield available is not more than 9 tmc ft.
More worrying is the potential damage to the Western Ghats, its forest cover and the environment. The project proposes eight weirs of 100 km-length pipelines, 12 electric substations, 11 pump houses, roads and other structures in the Ghats.
The project proposes to use 275 MW power for pumping water. The actual forest area in the Western Ghats required for the project is not clearly mentioned.
If the Western Ghats are destroyed, the monsoons will be affected. It will reduce the flow in the Cauvery in the long run.
Officials who prepared the proposal either do not have any knowledge of the coast or have deliberately ignored facts. As of now, the region suffers a drinking water shortage for more than 150 days in a year. The ground water table falls by more than 10m in December and January. The summer this year was the worst.
It is necessary to maintain a minimum flow in the Nethravathi to protect the ground water table of coastal districts. Sea water intrusion is a problem with coastal rivers. This also damages wells.
If the flow in the Nethravathi is disturbed, the cumulative effect of sea water intrusion will be immense. Fresh water flow during monsoon is important for fish breeding. The fishing community will be badly hit if the project is implemented.
It is internationally accepted that people of the river basin have the right to use the water both on the basis of riparian law and the law of prior appropriation. The government contends that coastal people have no such right as water resources fall under its control. True. But can any government claim the right to snatch water from one region to give it to another for purposes other than drinking?
In such a situation, where can the people of the coastal region plead for justice? If the government is serious about solving the problem, it should establish a Karavali River Basin Authority and ensure sustainability of the environment.
The author is former dean (planning and development) and professor of water resources engineering, NITK, Surathkal