INTERLINKING OF INDIAN RIVERS
A
presentation on interlinking of Indian rivers was made before
the Prime Minister by the Ministry of Water Resources, here today.
The Deputy Prime Minister, Shri L.K. Advani, Finance Minister,
Shri Jaswant Singh, Deputy Chairman Planning Commission, Shri
K.C. Pant & Shri MOS in Prime Minister’s Office, Shri Vijay
Goel attended the presentation. Besides, the Minister for Water
Resources, Shri Arjun Charan Sethi and Minister of State for Water
Resources, Ms. Bijoya Chakravarty, the Chief Minister of Andhra
Pradesh, Shri Chandrababu Naidu were also present on the occasion.
The Ministry of Water
Resources in the year 1980 had prepared a National Perspective
Plan (NPP) for optimum development of water resources of the country
envisaging interbasin transfer of water from surplus to deficit
basins / areas. The linkages when executed will enable mitigation
of flood and drought, increase availability of water for irrigation,
hydropower development and other uses. To further this outline
and give practical shape to the linkage proposals, the National
Water Development Agency (NWDA) was established in July, 1982
as an Autonomous Society under the Societies Registration Act,
1860 to carry out the water balance and other technical studies.
The National Perspective
Plan has two components viz. (i) Peninsular Rivers Development
Component and (ii) Himalayan Rivers Development Component.
Under the Peninsular Rivers
Development Component, NWDA has completed the Water Balance Studies
of 137 basins / sub-basins, Water Balance Studies at 52 diversion
points, 58 Reservoir Studies and 18 Toposheet Studies of link
alignments. Similarly, under the Himalayan Rivers Development
Component, the Water Balance Studies at 19 diversion points, Toposheet
studies of 16 Reservoirs, and Toposheet Studies of 19 link alignments
have been completed.
Pre-feasibility studies
of 30 link schemes have been completed. Further, the Feasibility
Reports of 6 links under Peninsular Component have also been completed.
Field Surveys & investigations of another 18 links are under
progress. It is planned to complete Feasibility Reports of all
the identified links under Peninsular Component by the year 2004
and Himalayan Component by the year 2008 as per the current mandate
of NWDA.
