Building consensus among states biggest hurdle in river-linking projects: Centre
In a written response in Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for Jal Shakti Raj Bhushan Choudhary underlined that the success of ILR projects hinges on inter-state agreement.
'The consensus building amongst states is the most challenging task due to apprehensions of states related to water sharing," Choudhary said.
Out of the 30 link projects identified under the National Perspective Plan, five have been prioritised for implementation. This includes the Ken-Betwa Link Project (KBLP), which is currently under execution.
With an estimated cost of Rs 44,605 crore, the KBLP aims to provide irrigation to over 10.6 lakh hectares across Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh and supply drinking water to around 62 lakh people.
It will also generate 103 MW of hydropower and 27 MW of solar energy, with completion targeted for March 2030.
The modified Parbati-Kalisindh-Chambal (PKC) link project, jointly taken up by Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, is expected to provide irrigation to six lakh hectares, drinking water to 21 districts in Rajasthan and 15 in Madhya Pradesh, and industrial water to regions including the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor.
Another major initiative under consideration is the Godavari-Cauvery link, which would divert unutilised waters from the Indravati sub-basin in Chhattisgarh and provide annual irrigation to 6.78 lakh hectares, along with drinking and industrial water to a population of over 21 million people.
The draft Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) has already been circulated among the participating states.
In Bihar, the Kosi-Mechi intra-state link scheme is expected to divert surplus monsoon water to irrigate over 2.1 lakh hectares and reduce flood impact downstream of the Kosi river. PTI UZM UZM KSS KSS
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July 21, 2025, 17:00 IST
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