Uttarakhand, UP agree to set up Ganga mgmt board

In a significant move, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh are holding talks to set up a Ganga management board to end the long-standing dispute for sharing of the river water.

“We have held some meetings with Uttar Pradesh to set up the Ganga management board,” a top Uttarakhand government official said here.

The official refused to divulge more information, but confirmed that the hill state has “accepted the reality” of the formation of the Ganga management board which it had opposed initially.

Official sources say Uttarakhand has agreed not to harm the interests of neighbouring UP as far as sharing of the Ganga water is concerned. “We are ready to provide all the water which Uttar Pradesh is getting till now,” said the official.

After the formation of Uttarkahand in November 2000, the union ministry of water resources had issued a notification under section 64 of the Uttar Pradesh Reorganisation Act, so that water from Ganga and its tributaries to both the states is not disturbed till the Ganga management board is set up.

Section 80 of the Act envisages a provision for setting up the board so that the two states get their proper share.

When Uttarakhand was being formed, the Centre could not notify the process of the formation of the board. This, sources said, was due to lack of consensus between the two riparian states.

However, the proposed board will not have any administrative power in other disputed areas where Uttarakhand is trying to get the control from UP over big projects like 1,400 megawatt Tehri and 400 megawatt Vishnu Prayag, Nanakmatta Sagar reservoir and a series of irrigation canals which are located in the hill state.

“This is a separate issue which is pending before the Supreme Court,” said the official.

After the Nainital High Court gave the administrative control of these assets to Uttarakhand few years ago, Uttar Pradesh had moved the apex court, which in turn stayed the ruling. “This is a long legal battle which is being fought against Uttar Pradesh in the Supreme Court,” said the official.