Political showdown feared as Bihar stops UP’s construction on Gandak

PATNA: The Water Resource Department of the Bihar government on Monday stopped the construction of a channel in the Gandak River in Bihar’s West Champaran area by the Uttar Pradesh government, in an act that is likely to snowball into a major political tussle between the two states. 

The Bihar government stepped in after local BJP leaders and the public raised objections to the construction. A week ago, an agency of the Uttar Pradesh government had started the construction works for a channel in the river in order to divert the stream of water from the UP side of the embankment, ahead of the upcoming flood season.

BJP MLA Vinay Bihari of Lauria in West Champaran first raised objections to the construction, saying the channel will exert tremendous pressure on the embankment on the Bihar side. And the increased pressure of water on the embankment may cause major breaches in it, which will lead to floodwaters inundating larger parts of West Champaran.

The BJP MLA had threatened to resign if the work is not stopped immediately by the Nitish Kumar-led NDA government in Bihar.Another BJP MLA, Narayan Prasad, also raised a strong objection to the construction.He alleged that the channel may change the mainstream of the rivers of Uttar Pradesh towards Bihar, resulting in increased pressure on the embankment.

Chief Minister Nitish Kumar immediately sought a report on the construction from the Water Resource Department (WRD). Officials of the WRD went to the site in Harpur Panchayat of Thakraha block of West Champaran for inspections.

“The team of WRD engineers and officials has stopped work of construction on Sunday,” Sanjay Kumar Jha, WRD minister informed the media. Meanwhile, an official statement from the Bihar WRD said the work was being carried out without getting the NOC from the Bihar government.