New Chhattisgarh CM keen to resolve Mahanadi dispute: Niranjan Patnaik

BHUBANESWAR: Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee president Niranjan Patnaik on Tuesday said the Mahanadi water dispute between the state and Chhattisgarh could be resolved amicably and blamed the BJD and BJP for turning it into a political gimmick.
Niranjan had gone to Chhattisgarh to attend the swearing-in of chief minister Bhupesh Baghel with Congress returning to power in the state after 15 years. “I have discussed the (Mahanadi) issue with Baghel and he is keen to resolve it as soon as possible. They also felt that the dispute was uncalled for and both the former BJP government in Chhattisgarh and current BJD government stretched the matter beyond any solution,” Niranjan told the media. His statement on the river dispute comes at a time when the Mahanadi River Disputes Tribunal has asked the Odisha government for data on water flow in the inter-state river in the last 20 years based on an interim application filed by the state seeking a stay on ongoing construction work by Chhattisgarh. The next hearing is scheduled on February 9 next year.

Senior BJP leader Samir Mohanty, while reacting to Niranjan’s statement, said, “If Congress is saying that it can resolve the dispute after its party has come to power in Chhattisgarh, then why doesn’t it ask the Chhattisgarh government to withdraw the case from the tribunal. The case is pending in the tribunal and we are optimistic it will be in favour of Odisha.”

BJD spokesperson Sasmit Patra felt the Congress should not try to score brownie points over the Mahanadi issue. “We need to hear directly from Chattisgarh CM and the government that the issue will be resolved. The Congress president should give a time frame when the Chhattisgarh government will reach out to Odisha on this issue.” Meanwhile, the tribunal is slated to hear the original petition filed by Odisha objecting to unilateral work on the river by Chhattisgarh on January 11.