Santwana Bhattacharya: Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat was a CM-probable when BJP won Rajasthan last year. The three-time MP from Jodhpur has perhaps one of the most challenging jobs of navigating interstate projects, some of them being long-lasting conflicts. He often has to make CMs engaged in “water wars” sit across the table, as big water projects go from the drawing board to the ground. Whether it is the Sutlej-Yamuna link between Punjab and Haryana, the Polavaram project in Andhra Pradesh, the Mekedatu and Upper Krishna project in Karnataka, and a host of others, his job has been to relate their feasibility to a genuine need for water on the ground. The Eastern Rajasthan Canal project, being upscaled to an interstate river-linking project, is an example of one of his recent focus areas in his home state. His training as a sportsman and national-level basketball player helps him dribble around, not allowing water disputes to become interstate wars.
We’d like to hear about all this and more -- what’s the status of some of these projects? Why does the Central approval take time?
The stated thrust of the Modi government’s approach has been to get things going and done faster than they usually used to be done. While we’d ask a few questions on water, we would naturally want to know how well the BJP is “irrigating” its field for the coming Lok Sabha polls in his home state and elsewhere. Can the party repeat its 2019 performance in Rajasthan and other northern states?
How does BJP balance its narrative of Ram and traditionalism with the construction of a postmodern society, with a GIFT city, for example, that can compete with Dubai? Is it like his (Shekhawat’s) early image of being a farmer in jeans and a Swadeshi Jagran Manch activist? What does he think of the farmers’ demand for a legal MSP guarantee? Is there not a simple way to tick many right boxes?
Gajendra Singh Shekhawat: Thank you for having me here. When Narendra Modi became Prime Minister in 2014, he vowed to work for all sections of society. The subject of water used to be discussed and planned by various departments in different ministries. They were clubbed together under the newly incorporated Ministry of Jal Shakti, and I was fortunate enough to be designated as the first minister of this ministry.
We monitor over 6,000 blocks regularly for groundwater resources. Over 20% of these are already in the exploited category. Being a diverse country, our water resources need to be distributed equitably – 18% of the country receives floods yearly, while a similar portion faces scarcity, including my home state. Barring the Ganga and Indus river systems, all other rivers in the country are rain-fed.
After deliberations across the country, it was decided that 55 litres per capita per day is an essential requirement to meet daily needs on fixed timings. According to the PM’s instructions, 60% of the budget from NREGA was tied to natural resource management, where water was the priority. Later, it was raised to 65%.
Shahid Faridi: The Comprehensive Water Management Index 2018 said the water demand will be more than the supply by 2030. In 2019, the NITI Aayog said India is facing the worst water crisis …
Gajendra Singh Shekhawat: It is wrong to say that our challenge is the availability of water. Instead, our challenge is the management of water. Today, we are also more dependent on groundwater. As per a NITI Aayog report, water availability was 5,000 cubic meters per person during Independence, which plummeted to 1,500 cubic meters not because the water was reduced but because the population expanded. So, we need to manage water well. The NITI Aayog report differs from a document based on the references from the World Bank report. When asked where the World Bank had it from, it said they read it in a newspaper. So, this is absolutely an unverified statement.
Shahid Faridi: Is there a link between the floods and the water wasted in 75 years? Is there any report on water conservation?
Gajendra Singh Shekhawat: Floods are a natural calamity. Given the climate change, it will aggravate. We will have to take care of flood management. One key way is to take the people eliminate the impact. My question is: “Have we encroached upon the river, or has the river come to our homes?”
Jitendra Choubey: What work are you doing on interstate water disputes?
Gajendra Singh Shekhawat: Currently, we are working on the Polavaram project. It is a 32-year-old project. On an average Rs 4,000 crore is spent on it every year. There is a need for Rs 12,000 crore more to complete it. Work is also underway on a north-south river transfer project with four links. After the first stage, 900 TMC of water will be transferred. It involves not just one or two states but seven of them.
Though the project started in 1969, the approval was not granted. We prepared a DPR and got it passed by the CWC. We are confident of getting approvals from all the states to complete the project.
Rajesh Kumar Thakur: What are the steps taken to sort out the Sutlej-Yamuna issue?
Gajendra Singh Shekhawat: This dispute primarily involving Punjab and Haryana governments is persisting for decades. Last year, the Supreme Court ordered the secretary of Jal Shakti Mantralaya to sit with the chief secretaries of both states for an amicable solution. I tried thrice to convince the two CMs; unfortunately, there has been no consensus.
Jitendra Choubey: The country has nearly a dozen interstate water disputes…
Gajendra Singh Shekhawat: Legacy issues are being addressed through legal processes before tribunals. The Interstate River Water Disputes Act has been in place since 1956, and it involves a year-long negotiation followed by tribunal proceedings within three years. To expedite the process, I proposed a bill to consolidate all tribunals and operate them like regular courts, aiming for judgments within three years. Unfortunately, this bill was not passed in the Rajya Sabha.
Ketan Narottam Tanna: Is there any plan to re-negotiate the Indus Water Treaty?
Gajendra Singh Shekhawat: How many of you have studied this treaty in detail? Even I read it after becoming the minister. I also read a book by an engineer who was present when the treaty was signed.
Eighteen per cent of the landmass goes to Pakistan, and the rest is with us. Among the 18%, the east and west sides are with Pakistan. Fifteen years later, when dealing with water, 82% goes to Pakistan and 18% to us. Another exciting thing is that nobody will act as a third party in two-country dealings.
However, we made the World Bank a party in the deal with Pakistan. What do we have to do with a bank?
Anup Verma: Last year, the PM mentioned connecting Bengaluru lakes. What is its status?
Gajendra Singh Shekhawat: New developments are taking place in Bengaluru, and the future of urban water is changing. There is groundwater depletion around neighbouring districts of the city. Now, we have revived all the major water bodies in the city, which could be used for multiple purposes.
Shahid Faridi: The treated water supplied for gardening at bungalows in Lutyens Delhi has a terrible odour.
Gajendra Singh Shekhawat: I, too, am a victim of it. All the sewage treatment plants in Delhi are non-conforming. They are not adequately treating the water.
Hari Nisanth: The Cauvery Water Management Authority decided to return the Mekedatu project to the Central Water Commission. What next?
Gajendra Singh Shekhawat: The Mekedatu construction of the reservoir is an age-old issue. Before going into the details of any DPR by any state, we can only appraise if Tamil Nadu gives an NOC. This is beyond our legal capacity. I tried to convince both states… Unfortunately, the issue has been politicised.
Shahid Faridi: Is Vasundhara Raje happy now? Is she still supporting the BJP?
Gajendra Singh Shekhawat: Vasundhara Raje is fine. She worked hard for the Assembly election and will do so for the Lok Sabha elections. In the BJP, the party is always larger than an individual.
Mukesh Ranjan: Is the Rajput community upset after the party installed a Brahmin CM in Rajasthan?
Gajendra Singh Shekhawat: Most of the Gujjars voted for us in the recent Assembly elections in the state. Traditionally, they have been with us. Even during the Gujjar agitation, when so many people died, 70% of Gujjars remained with us. As far as the farmers’ agitation is concerned, it has no impact on Rajasthan.
Rajesh Kumar Thakur: Why is the government allowing farmers protest to go on?
Gajendra Singh Shekhawat: We are constantly in touch with the farmers. How many of you have read the Swaminathan pareport? Even these protesting farmers would not have read it. The report calls for the holistic transformation of the agriculture sector.