Goa Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar said the State will not succumb to any political pressure on the matter.
“Let Karnataka do whatever they want, we are not bothered. We will not fall for any kind of pressure. The State political parties are united on the Mhadei water dispute matter,” Parsekar told media persons on Monday.
“We will not follow them (Karnataka). We will do what we have to do,” Parsekar said reiterating that he would be meeting the Prime Minister on the issue along with Union Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar.
During the recent Budget Session of the Assembly, the House had raised strong apprehensions over the proposed setting up of an Inter-State River Water Dispute Tribunal for the entire country by the Union Government.
The State government has approached Centre with a request to ‘exclude’ the Mhadei water dispute tribunal (MWDT), involving Goa, Karnataka and Maharashtra on the water diversion issue, from the proposal. The proposal had also spoken of dissolving the MWDT. Parsekar had informed the House that he would be meeting the Prime Minister to apprise him about the problem the State will face owing to the amendment to the Inter-State River Water Disputes Act, 1956.
The House was unanimous in urging government that it should put up a strong case before the Centre refusing to accept the proposal.
Karnataka wants to build barrages across the Kalasa-Banduri tributaries of the Mahadayi River to divert 7.6 thousand million cubic feet of water for supplying drinking water to four districts – Gadag, Hubbali-Dharwad, Belagavi and Bagalkote – through the Malaprabha River. Goa has objected to sharing of water, calling the river a lifeline for its people.
