Goa CM Manohar Parrikar (File)
Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar Wednesday said that sharing the water of the Mahadeyi river with other states was “inevitable”. “One has to understand that 52 kms of the river runs through Goa, 35 kms through Karnataka and 16 kms through Maharashtra. As such, sharing of water of Mahadeyi river is inevitable as it is passing through all the three states,” said Parrikar.
Parrikar said that as the river passes through three states, each of them have some right over its water. He was responding to questions on the crucial water dispute during the press briefing today.
“If someone thinks Karnataka will not get a share out of the tribunal judgment, I think he is living in a fool’s paradise,” he added. “But at the same time, Karnataka cannot take or divert water from Mahadeyi basin to another basin. They have to use it for drinking purposes or utilize it within the basin,” he added.
Parrikar told reporters today that the issue before the Mahadeyi Water Dispute Tribunal is about diversion of water from the basin. Parrikar added that the issue currently before the tribunal is “to ascertain whether the Mahadeyi basin is deficit or not.”
He informed that as per the Interstate River Water Dispute Act, one cannot divert water from a deficit basin to another basin adding that “we have proved it with documentary evidence that the Mahadeyi basin is a deficit one.”
Goa and Karnataka have a disagreement over sharing of Mahadeyi river waters. He reiterated that the interests of Goa would not be compromised on the Mahadeyi river issue.
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