Monsoon Mayhem Ignored- Government’s Negligent Approach Towards River Linking Project In India

Ignorance of Monsoon Mayhem by Negligent Approach Towards River Linking Project

The River Linking Project, typically referred to as the National River Linking Project (NRLP), is a large-scale interconnection initiative launched by the Government of India. It intends to deal with the country’s water-related issues through a network of connected rivers throughout the country. The project proposes to move excess water from water-rich areas to water-deficient regions, allowing for greater agriculture, flood mitigation, hydroelectric power generation, and enhanced overall water management. Nevertheless, the project has made barely any advancement over the last four decades, highlighting the government’s neglectful approach.

The river connection project in India could prove to be a large-scale endeavor that would alleviate shortages of water, control floods to some extent, as well as enhance the irrigation system throughout the whole nation.

Even though the project has advantages and possible benefits along with some challenges, it is critical to recognize the necessity of thorough planning, meticulous implementation, as well as upholding the government’s obligation of carrying it out.

The reoccurring concern about floods amid the monsoon season in various parts of India is one of the key reasons why the river connection project should have been a top priority. Every year, severe rains cause disastrous floods, inflicting deaths, displacement, and destruction of infrastructure and agriculture. The project had the potential to contribute to controlling the flow of water and reduce the effects of catastrophic rains and floods by connecting rivers and successfully managing the Indian water resources.

However, it is regrettable that the government has been viewed as irresponsible in carrying out the project and performing its responsibilities in a variety of ways. For starters, there has been a dearth of rigorous planning and environmental impact assessments, raising concerns about the potential ecological effects of rerouting rivers and diverting water on such a huge scale. Environmental scientists have expressed concern about the possibility for ecological disruption, biodiversity loss, and negative consequences on riverine habitats.

Furthermore, the government’s attitude to public consultation and openness in relation to the project has been deficient. Local communities, environmental organizations, and other relevant stakeholders must be involved in order to fully comprehend the possible social, economic, as well as environmental consequences of such a vast effort.

Unfortunately, there have been cases where impacted communities have not been appropriately consulted or given advance warning of the project’s ramifications, which has resulted in demonstrations as well as legal challenges.

Another facet of the government’s neglect is poor resource allocation and project implementation delays. A project of this scope requires adequate finance, timely execution, as well as excellent coordination across numerous departments and agencies. Unfortunately, claims of insufficient money, bureaucratic roadblocks, along with a lack of inter-departmental collaboration have impeded work and delayed the conclusion of the project.

Given the monsoon season circumstances in India, where floods wreak havoc year after year, the poor progress and lack of urgency in constructing the river connection project is disheartening.

Tackling shortages of water while addressing flood management, and expanding irrigation facilities should have been among the top priorities, but the government’s actions have frequently fallen short of the public’s and the environment’s expectations.

The government must recognize the significance of the river connection project and take a more proactive and responsible approach. Comprehensive planning, clear decision-making processes, enough finance, and meaningful interaction with affected communities and environmental specialists are all required. By doing so, the government can assure that the river connection project is a long-term and effective solution to India’s water problems, especially when it comes to the monsoon season.

Objectives

The key objectives associated with India’s River Linking Project are as follows:

• Water scarcity reduction- By connecting rivers, the project hopes to transport water from excess basins to water-stressed areas, resulting in a more equal distribution of water resources.
• Improving Irrigation- The project proposes to build a large network of canals to aid irrigation in drought-prone areas, allowing farmers to utilize their land all year and increasing agricultural productivity.
• Flood prevention- The project attempts to reduce the detrimental effects of floods in vulnerable areas by redirecting excess water throughout monsoon seasons. This includes building reservoirs and dams for storing and controlling water movement.
• Hydroelectric power generation- The project’s goal is to use river interlinking to generate hydroelectric power, encouraging sustainable energy sources, and lowering reliance on fossil fuels.

River Linking Project Components

The NRLP is made up of two major components-

1. Component of Himalayan River Development

This component emphasizes the interconnection of rivers that originate in the Himalayan region. It entails building storage reservoirs, canals, as well as tunnels to transport water from the Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers along with their tributaries to rivers that run through the peninsular region.

2. Component of Peninsular Rivers Development

This component intends to connect rivers in India’s peninsular area. It entails connecting rivers like the Mahanadi, Godavari, Krishna, and Cauvery, among others, to alleviate water scarcity and promote irrigation in regions with limited access to water.

Criticisms and challenges

Several concerns and complaints have been leveled regard to the River Linking Project-

• Concerns about the environment- Concerns have been made pertaining to the project’s ecological impact on river ecosystems, such as the displacement of aquatic species as well as the altering of natural river flows. Environmentalists believe that the project must emphasize ecological conservation and maintain sustainable water management techniques.
• Costs and viability- The project’s size and complexity provide substantial financial and logistical obstacles. Critics question the project’s practicality and claim that the cost estimates have been largely under-estimated.
• Water disputes between states- River water disputes between states have long been a source of contention in India. River interconnections may intensify these disputes, demanding careful negotiations and compromises among the parties concerned.
• Social ramifications- Local communities may be displaced as a result of reservoir and canal development, disrupting their livelihoods as well as cultural activities. To address these concerns, appropriate rehabilitation and resettlement procedures need to be put in place.

Historical context

During British control, the river interlinking project had been initially proposed for India. Engineer Arthur Cotton advocated connecting the major rivers of India to Vikram, a significant supplier of goods, and solving the water deficit concerns. KL Rao, then Minister of State for Energy and Irrigation, revived the notion in 1960 when he advocated linking the rivers Ganga and Cauvery. The National Water Grid had been suggested by dam designer K.L. Rao.

He argued that the National Water Grid may be used to address the problems of regular flooding in the north and water scarcity in the south of India. Former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi formed the National Water Development Agency in 1982. This organization researched India’s water condition and diverse water bodies, and it recommended numerous river connection projects. This project’s execution got underway in 1999. The government was ordered by the Supreme Court in 2002 to produce a plan for joining rivers by 2003 and put it into action by 2016. The government created a task team in 2003 to deal with the problem. The Supreme Court asked for the project to be restarted in 2012.

The Ken-Betwa River Linking Project received Cabinet approval in 2014. The government’s opposition to the project, which is driven mostly by environmentalists, has prevented it from moving further. The first river interlinking project in India, which would have linked the Betwa River in Uttar Pradesh with the Ken River in Madhya Pradesh, eventually began construction in 2021, about 40 years after it was first conceived.

India’s drought-prone regions- In accordance to the Drought Early Warning System (DEWS), a real-time drought monitoring tool, almost 42% of India’s geographical area is at risk for drought. The worst-affected states include Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Karnataka, as well as parts of Maharashtra and the North East. Nearly 40% of the nation’s population, or 500 million people, reside in the aforementioned states.

According to reports, there are six classifications for the regions of the country experiencing drought: Exceptionally Dry, Extremely Dry, Severely Dry, Moderately Dry, Abnormally Dry, and No Drought. 11% of the country is classified as Extremely or Exceptionally dry (as of 2019).

India’s flood-prone regions- According to the SAARC Disaster Management Centre, India’s average flood-prone land area is 40 million hectares, or 12% of the country’s total land area. In India, floods affect around 8 million hectares annually. The Himalayan River basin, which includes sections of Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Delhi, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, as well as West Bengal, is the area of the country that experiences the highest flooding.

The Narmada, Tapi, Chambal, and Mahanadi River basins in the Central and Peninsular regions are also prone to flooding. The Godavari, Krishna, Pennar, and Cauvery regularly experience significant flooding.

The Need for Interlinking River Project

The interlinking river is a technique for moving surplus water from areas with heavy rainfall to regions at risk of drought. Thus, it has control over both droughts and floods. In many ways, this will also help to resolve the nation’s water crisis.

Additionally, the project will help with hydropower production. The construction of multiple dams and reservoirs is required for this project. A total of 34000 MW of power will be produced if the project is finished. The initiative will contribute to improving dry weather flow. That is, extra water that has been kept in reservoirs might be released during a dry season. The least quantity of water will be able to flow through the rivers as a result. This will play a significant role in protecting forests, fisheries, animals, and navigation, among other things.

Monsoon rains are crucial to Indian agriculture. Unexpected monsoon behavior affects how productively agriculture is done. This issue will be solved once irrigation facilities improve. In places with limited water resources, the initiative will offer irrigation services. The project’s improvement of the inland waterways transportation network will also help the economy. Additionally, fish farming will be one of several additional sources of income for rural communities.

By adding more waterline defense, the project will also improve the nation’s security and defense. It would also aid in lessening regional imbalance. India depends on unreliable and unevenly distributed monsoon rainfall. The quantity of extra rain and river water that flows into the sea will be reduced via river connectivity.

Further when it comes to sending surplus water to deficiency areas, interlinking can also help India’s challenges with rain-fed irrigation. This can, in some cases, lessen the consequences of drought and flooding. Other benefits include the production of hydropower, year-round navigation, the development of jobs, and environmental advantages due to the replenishment of dried-up forests and lands.

First river-linking project

The Ken-Betwa river-linking project, a much-anticipated river interlinking project in India, has advanced significantly after nearly 40 years of delay. A tripartite agreement was signed by the Chief Ministers of Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, and the Union Jal Shakti Ministry, indicating that the project would soon get underway. The 1980s-era initiative has finally overcome a number of obstacles and is about to come to pass.

Due to substantial challenges, the grandiose Ken-Betwa river connection project was delayed for a long time. It stalled as a result of disagreements between the two states about water distribution during the non-monsoon seasons, funding problems, and regulatory approvals. The project was initially supposed to start in 2015, but it was stuck in the planning stages for a while.

However, the Modi government breathed new life into the project by renegotiating agreements with the states, ultimately defining the terms for water sharing. The revised deal provided the necessary impetus to push the project forward and address previous concerns.

Despite the renewed momentum, the Ken-Betwa project encountered staunch opposition from environmentalists and political figures. Jairam Ramesh, a former environment minister and Congress MP, expressed apprehension on social media, stating that the linking of the Ken and Betwa rivers would likely jeopardize the Panna Tiger Reserve, which had become a success story in terms of translocation and revival. Ramesh claimed to have suggested alternative solutions a decade ago but lamented that they were not heeded.

The Ken-Betwa Link Project (KBLP), with a projected expenditure of INR 44,605 crore, was ultimately given final approval by the government in December 2021. Through a specially formed organization called the Ken Betwa Link Project Authority, the national government committed support worth INR 39,317 crore.

Projects for intra-state links have also been aggressively pursued by the National Water Development Agency (NWDA). The organization has so far received 49 link ideas from ten different states. The emphasis is still on starting and finishing these projects on schedule, even though pre-feasibility reports for 39 link projects and comprehensive project reports for six link projects have been finished and submitted to the appropriate states.

With frequent floods in some areas and droughts in others, the interlinking of rivers initiative seeks to address the considerable temporal and spatial differences in water availability across the nation. The program aims to lessen regional imbalances, which will help to lessen the severity of floods and the frequency of droughts.

The government’s National Perspective Plan (NPP), which was created in 1980, is crucial to the development of water resources. The NPP offers a wide range of advantages, including the irrigation of 25 million hectares of land using surface waters, the expansion of groundwater use to cover an additional 10 million hectares, the production of 34,000 MW of hydropower, as well as improvements to domestic and industrial water supplies, navigational infrastructure, the creation of jobs, fisheries, salinity control, as well as reduction of pollution.

An important turning point in India’s water management strategy has been reached with the signature of the tripartite agreement for the Ken-Betwa river-linking project. Despite the project’s extended delay, when it finally starts, water supply, agriculture, hydropower production, and other linked industries stand to benefit significantly. The project is expected to promote balanced regional development and alleviate the difficulties brought on by persistent floods and droughts that have afflicted the nation for years.

In conclusion, the river connection project in India has enormous potential to increase irrigation facilities, reduce flooding, and manage water scarcity. However, the government’s negligent approach and unwillingness to carry out its responsibility have hampered the project’s advancement and efficacy.

When you consider the annual damage brought on by monsoon floods across the nation, the project ought to have been a top priority. Rivers may have been linked together to control water flow and lessen the effects of floods. However, the lack of thorough planning by the government, poor environmental evaluations, and a lack of full disclosure have led to worries about the project’s effects on the natural environment as well as local residents.

Inadequate resource allocation, operational delays, along with the absence of interdepartmental collaboration are other signs of government carelessness. These obstacles have slowed down work and extended the project’s completion, making India’s water-related problems worse. The government must acknowledge the significance of the river connection project and take a more proactive and responsible strategy in order to guarantee its success. This entails thorough planning, open decision-making procedures, sufficient finance, and substantive interaction with the impacted communities and environmental specialists.

The government can effectively solve water scarcity and flood management by giving the river connection project priority and carrying out its obligation. While carrying out such a big effort, it is imperative to ensure sustainable development, the sustainability of the environment, and the welfare of the people. The government must take the chance to make the river connection project a success, benefiting the country and its people for countless generations in the face of growing water challenges as well as monsoon-related disasters.