Krishna River Water Dispute

Krishna River Water Dispute

Subject – Polity

Context – Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai will be soon travelling to New Delhi to discuss the legal hurdles in raising the height of the Almatti dam to 524 metres from 519 metres.

Concept –

• The Krishna is an east-flowing river that originates at Mahabaleshwar in Maharashtra and merges with the Bay of Bengal, flowing through Maharashtra, Karnataka, Telangana and AP.
• Together with its tributaries, it forms a vast basin that covers 33% of the total area of the four states.
• A dispute over the sharing of Krishna waters has been ongoing for many decades, beginning with the erstwhile Hyderabad and Mysore states, and later continuing between successors.

Inter-State River Water Disputes:

• Article 262of the Constitution provides for the adjudication of inter-state water disputes.
  • Under this, Parliament may by law provide for the adjudication of any dispute or complaint with respect to the use, distribution and control of waters of any inter-state river and river valley.
  • Parliament may also provide that neither the Supreme Court nor any other court is to exercise jurisdiction in respect of any such dispute or complaint.
• The Parliament has enacted the two laws, the River Boards Act (1956) and the Inter-State Water Disputes Act (1956).
• The River Boards Act provides for the establishment of river boards by the Central government for the regulation and development of inter-state river and river valleys. A River Board is established on the request of state governments concerned to advise them.
• The Inter-State Water Disputes Act empowers the Central government to set up an ad hoc tribunal for the adjudication of a dispute between two or more states in relation to the waters of an inter-state river or river valley.
  • The decision of the tribunal is final and binding on the parties to the dispute.
  • Neither the Supreme Court nor any other court is to have jurisdiction in respect of any water dispute which may be referred to such a tribunal under this Act.

Krishna River –

• The Krishna River is the second biggest river in peninsular India after the Godavari River.
• It originates near Mahabaleshwar (Satara) in Maharashtra.
• It runs from four states Maharashtra (303 km), North Karnataka (480 km) and the rest of its 1300 km journey in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh before it empties into the Bay of Bengal.
• Tributaries: Tungabhadra, Mallaprabha, Koyna, Bhima, Ghataprabha, Yerla, Warna, Dindi, Musi and Dudhganga.
• Pattiseema Lift Irrigation project is the first river-linking project in India, connecting Godavari with Krishna through the Polavaram right canal. It will divert surplus Godavari water to Krishna river.

Almatti Dam –

• The Lal Bahadur Shastri Damis also known as Almatti Dam is a hydroelectric project on the Krishna Riverin North Karnataka.
• The backwaters of the dam host several migratory birds during summer.