GOA CM Manohar Parikkar Hails Verdict On Sharing Mandavi River Water With Karnataka & Maharashtra

GOA Chief Minister Manohar Parikkar has hailed the verdict of the Tribunal on sharing water of the Mandavi river also called Mahadayi River, the lifeline of the coastal western state, with Karnataka and Maharashtra. Parrikar said the final verdict has done justice to Goa. “I am happy that the Mhadei Tribunal with its final verdict has done justice to Goa. I thank the legal team and everyone who has fought relentlessly for protecting our lifeline Mhadei.”  The river has a length of 77 kilometres, 29 kilometres in Karnataka and 52 kilometres in Goa before flowing into the Arabian Sea. The Mahadayi Water Disputes Tribunal which has been hearing the tussle over sharing of the Mahadayi or Mandovi  river between Goa, Karnataka and Maharashtra, delivered its final verdict on Tuesday ending a 50-year-old dispute. The tribunal allowed Karnataka access to 13.4 tmc of water for its consumptive use (5.4 tmc) and power generation (8.02 tmc).The share of Goa has been  pegged at 24 tmc with the Tribunal allowing it for the state’s municipal water needs, irrigation water requirements and industrial water demands. Maharashtra got the lowest share of 1.33 tmc for meeting its in-basin needs with respect to five projects. The Mahadayi river basin drains an area of 2032 square kilometres of which 375 square km lies in Karnataka, 77 sq km in Maharashtra and the remaining in Goa.He tribunal also directed the Centre to set up the Mahadayi Water Management Authority to implement its report and its verdict .The dispute arose since Goa was opposed to Karnataka’s plans to divert waters from the tributaries of the river, which Karnataka justified was for drinking water purposes. The tribunal was constituted in November 2010. In Karnataka, The Mahadayi Horata Samithi welcomed the ruling pronounced by retired justice JM Panchal. The group expressed satisfaction over the judgment, claiming that the people of Karnataka had finally got justice.