CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami on Tuesday sought Central nod for the Nadanthai Vaazhi Cauvery Project aimed at rehabilitation and rejuvenation of Cauvery river on the lines of Namami Gange Project.
During his discussions with Union Minister for Jal Shakti, Gajendra Singh Shekhawat on various issues relating to water resources through video conferencing, the Chief Minister said, "The Water and Power Consultancy Services Limited is preparing the detailed project report.
"Cauvery is the lifeline of Tamil Nadu, not only for agriculture but also for drinking water. So, I request that this project may be sanctioned as a special programme like the Namami Gange Project and may be taken up as a National Project."
Recalling that almost a year ago, Tamil Nadu had requested to re-work the alignment of Godavari and Cauvery rivers and to allot 200 TMC of water to Tamil Nadu from the project, Palaniswami urged the Union Minister to instruct NWDA to quickly complete the preparation of DPR for this project and take up the work.
Similarly, the Cauvery-Gundar link is proposed within Tamil Nadu and is a part of the National Perspective Plan for river development, he said and requested that NWDA could be instructed to forward the DPR to the State Government so that the work could be fast-tracked.
Pointing out that Karnataka has been constructing an anicut across the Penniyar river against the agreements in force, the Chief Minister said based on SC order, Negotiation Committee meetings were held by Central Water Commission (CWC). "As there is no progress in these meetings, we have requested the Government of India to form a Tribunal immediately. Urgent action in this regard will be appreciated," he added.
Palaniswami said during the past four years, he had taken up a number of initiatives to bring water security to the State by launching many water conservation and augmentation programmes like the Kudimaramath scheme. As many as 6,278 works have been taken up at a cost of Rs.1,434 crore in the last four years.
The CM further said he had requested certain corrections in the proposed Dam Safety Bill before it is introduced in the Lok Sabha. "The State which owns, operates, and controls the dam should have full operational control with regard to dam safety," he underscored.
He reiterated that Centre should instruct the Central Water Commission and Cauvery Water Management Authority to reject Karnataka's proposal constructing a dam across Cauvery at Mekedatu as such a move would be in violation of the SC order. He also requested the Centre to include Tamil Nadu in Atal Bhujal Yojana since it has been a water-deficient State.
With regard to Jal Jeevan Mission, Palaniswami said updated baseline data of rural households had been uploaded in May. "For the current year, 34 lakh households are proposed to be covered by giving tap connections. For 2020-21, against an allocation of Rs 2,375 crore, we have allotted Rs 2,265 crore to the districts to effect 20 lakh household connections. Remaining 14 lakh households will be covered by converging funds of the various schemes. We have already covered about 4 lakh connections and propose to complete the rest by March 2021," he added.