CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu has welcomed Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s announcement on the Centre extending support for the Godavari-Cauvery river-linking project, albeit with a few concerns. Chief Minister MK Stalin said the news that draft detailed project reports were finalised has come as a solace.
“What concerns us is that there is no initial allocation of funds for implementation,” he added. Opposition leader Edappadi K Palaniswami thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for reviving the project.
But experts say there is little to rejoice until there are efforts for the various States involved to reach a consensus. S Janakarajan, a former professor at the Madras Institute of Development Studies, told TNIE,
“The government is making promises. But who is working to bring in a consensus among the States?”
Explaining the issues plaguing the project, Janakararajan said, “Many parts of the Godavari basin in Maharashtra are very dry. Similar is the case in Karnataka, Telangana, and Andhra Pradesh as well. When they have not met their own demand, how will these States give you water? Another issue is that they may have surplus water today but may need the water in the future. It’s a multi-State issue, and unless there is some kind of consensus, it will not be possible for TN to get water. It’s not so easy.”
Retired irrigation engineer A Veerappan is of the view that the project won’t be of any use to TN. “Our State has to spend over Rs 30,000 crore on this project if at all other States agree to implement it; and TN has to wait at least 10 years for the implementation. Instead, we can concentrate on deepening our own water resources. We, retired engineers, have submitted a scheme for this but it is yet to be considered by the State government.”
Veerappan also said if the State government spends about Rs 1,000 crore, it could get the water being promised through the Godavari-Cauvery river linking project with less effort and expenditure and within one year. Veerappan said the Godavari-Cauvery river-linking project envisages 83 TMC of water for TN and around 12 TMC will go in evaporation losses and when it flows into the Cauvery river, TN can get only around 45 TMC. “The Centre knows well that this project cannot be implemented. If at all it is serious about the project, why can’t they organise a meeting between the concerned States and arrive at a consensus,” he added.