Team Herald
PORVORIM: Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar on Friday bluntly said no to an out-of-court settlement on sharing Mhadei river water by saying “Mhadei water dispute tribunal will decide” the issue.
“The case is in the court…why will I talk,” Parrikar said when asked whether government is ready for an out-of-court settlement on the Mhadei water diversion issue.
“The case is currently before the tribunal, so let the tribunal decide,” he commented further.
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had last week requested Parrikar to call for a meeting between the three States — Goa, Karnataka and Maharashtra — for an “amicable” solution on the Mhadei issue.
In a letter to Parrikar, Siddaramaiah had asked to indicate a tentative date for holding a meeting between the three States chief ministers for finding an “amicable” solution to the water diversion issue.
“I request you to indicate your convenience, so that a meeting could be organized amongst us at a mutually convenient date/time,” he said in the letter.
However, the State Water Resources Minister Vinod Palyekar turned down the proposal stating that there is no question of amicable solution out of court.
Karnataka has planned 12 dams across the river Mhadei, while Maharashtra wants to construct four dams.
The Mhadei Water Dispute Tribunal (MWDT) hearing the Mhadei River water diversion involving the three States, had in September 2016 suggested that the chief ministers of try and reach an amicable settlement to the water dispute.
The hearing before the Mhadei tribunal continues at present. The term of the Tribunal will expire on August 21.
