Historic Pact among inter-state agreements : Vanam Jwala Narasimha Rao

Historic Pact among inter-state agreements

Vanam Jwala Narasimha Rao

Metro India (26-08-2016)

Government of Telangana represented by none other than its Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao signed three agreements with Maharashtra Government represented by its Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on 23^rd August 2016 paving way for constructing three barrages across Penganga, Pranahita and Godavari rivers at Chanakha-Korata, Tambhidihatti and Medigadda respectively. Barrage across Pranahita at Tambhidihatti in Adilabad district will be of 148-metre full reservoir level (FRL), at Medigadda in Karimnagar across the Godavari will be of 100-metre FRL and at Chanakha-Korata in Adilabad across Penganga river will be of 213-metre FRL. However the design for the barrage at Medigadda shall provide for further scope of increasing barrage height by one more meter and the final decision of raising the height will be taken by the Inter-State Board after experiencing the actual submergence.

The capacity of the barrages designed at the three places is 1.8 TMC feet, 16.17 TMC feet and 0.85 TMC feet, respectively and utilization of about 200 TMC feet water out of allocated share of 950 TMC feet for Telangana in Godavari waters. About 50 lakh acres would be brought under irrigation through these barrages. Present Adilabad district will be the major beneficiary of the historic agreement.

Earlier on 8^th March 2016 Chief Ministers of Telangana and Maharashtra signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) at Mumbai on setting up an Inter-State water board on Godavari projects, ending decades of discord between the two States on utilization of water in the River Godavari and its tributaries. The move may be described as first of its kind in this direction. The two Chief Ministers termed the signing of MoU as historic event, since they resolved water disputes lingering on for decades without the intervention of the Center, tribunals or courts.

At an era when neighboring countries could have good relations and could sign agreements, an agreement of this was never conceived either by earlier Maharashtra or erstwhile Andhra Pradesh governments and the projects across Penganga, Pranahita and Godavari rivers ended up in inter-state dispute, even though same party governments were in office not only in both the states but also at center. The agreement signed by both the CMs has in it number of clauses similar to dos and don’ts, like obtaining statutory clearances, carrying out flood studies, land acquisition issues, construction of flood banks, monitoring water levels, cost and water sharing, drinking water needs, fishing and navigation rights etc. Both the governments will as per the agreement initiate necessary actions for completion of the barrages.

Experience reveals that complexity of water sharing problems all over the world can be better handled diplomatically. The history of international water treaties dates as far back as 2500 BC, when the two warring city-states of Mesopotamia, Lagash and Umma, signed the first ever recorded treaty ending a prolonged water dispute along the Tigris River. Since then more than 3,600 treaties related to international water resources have been drawn up. A number of these agreements remained intact despite wars and conflicts between the nations concerned. The best example is, the Indus River Commission that survived two wars between India and Pakistan. The Permanent Indus Commission has survived three wars and provides an ongoing mechanism for consultation and conflict resolution through inspection, exchange of data and visits.

The treaty between India and Pakistan is considered to be one of the most successful water sharing endeavors in the world even today. The partition of British India created a conflict over the plentiful waters of the Indus basin. The newly formed states were at odds over how to share and manage what was essentially a cohesive and unitary network of irrigation. The Indus Waters Treaty between India and Pakistan initiated by the World Bank was signed in Karachi on September 19, 1960 by the Indian Prime Minister Late Jawaharlal Nehru and President of Pakistan Late Ayub Khan. According to this agreement, control over the Beas, Ravi and Sutlej, the three "eastern" rivers, was given to India and the Indus, Chenab and Jhelum, the three "western" rivers, to Pakistan. Since Pakistan's rivers flow through India first, the treaty allowed India to use them for irrigation, transport and power generation, while laying down precise do's and don'ts for Indian building projects along the way. Since the ratification of the treaty in 1960, India and Pakistan have not engaged in any water wars.

Another best example is the sharing of the Ganges River waters that flows from northern India into Bangladesh between India and Bangladesh. The issue has remained a subject of conflict for almost 35 years, with several bilateral agreements and rounds of talks failing to produce results. However, a comprehensive bilateral treaty was signed by the former Indian Prime Minister H. D. Deve Gowda and the then-Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Wajed on December 12, 1996 in New Delhi. The treaty established a 30-year water-sharing arrangement and recognized Bangladesh's rights as a lower-level riparian. Earlier in accordance with an agreement signed by Indian Prime Minister Late Indira Gandhi and Bangladesh's founding leader Sheikh Mujibur Rehman on March 19, 1972 the two nations established a Joint River Commission to work for the common interests and sharing of water resources, irrigation, floods and cyclones control.

Successful water sharing negotiations are based on certain guiding Principles and adherence to certain standards in the negotiations. Coordination and Cooperation, limited purpose and comprehensive management with focus on the allocation and use of shared waters and on resolving conflicts involving such waters will be of great help to keep the agreement live for longer years. The Telangana-Maharashtra agreement included all these.

Most of the Indian rivers are inter-state, flowing through more than one state. Due to increase in demand for water, a number of inter­state disputes over sharing river waters have surfaced. The Interstate River Water Disputes Act, 1956 (IRWD Act) enacted under Article 262 of Constitution of India on the eve of reorganization of states on linguistic basis is aimed at resolving the water disputes that would arise in the use, control and distribution of an interstate river or river valley. This Act further has undergone amendments subsequently and its most recent amendment took place in the year 2002. The Act among others addresses actions of a downstream state affecting the interest of an upstream state and as well as actions of an upstream state affecting the interest of a downstream state. It is however debatable as to how many times the Act could be successfully implemented. Had it been done Maharashtra could not have constructed 450+ barrages and check dams across River Godavari. Hence the need to enter in to a bilateral agreement had arisen and both Maharashtra and Telangana have shown a way for other states.

It may be apt to quote here former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan who said that "Fierce national competition over water resources has prompted fears that water issues contain the seeds of violent conflict. If the entire world's peoples work together, a secure and sustainable water future can be ours”. 

The agreement signed by CM KCR and Devendra Fadnavis will be recorded in the history as an unprecedented and unique one like the first ever recorded treaty between Lagash and Umma, like the Indus Waters treaty between India and Pakistan and Ganges River waters treaty between India and Bangladesh. End