Lok Sabha Question No. 520 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-02-06
Subject: Inter-linking of Rivers in Bihar
Ministry: JAL SHAKTI
Asked by: Shri Kaushalendra Kumar

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF JAL SHAKTI

## DEPARTMENT OF WATER RESOURCES, RIVER DEVELOPMENT & GANGA REJUVENATION

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 520

ANSWERED ON 06.02.2025

## INTER-LINKING OF RIVERS IN BIHAR

## †520. SHRI KAUSHALENDRA KUMAR

Will the Minister of JAL SHAKTI be pleased to state:

(a) whether the Government is considering any special scheme for inter-linking of rivers in the country;

(b) if so, the details thereof;

(c) whether any flaws have been detected in the previously implemented schemes and if so, the details thereof;

(d) whether Bihar has to bear the brunt of the catastrophic flood water released into the rivers from outside every year; and

(e) if so, the details thereof indicating the rivers in Bihar proposed to be inter-linked under the scheme along with the time by which it is likely to be completed?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR JAL SHAKTI

## ( SHRI RAJ BHUSHAN CHOUDHARY )

(a) & (b) The Government of India formulated a National Perspective Plan (NPP) for Inter-linking of Rivers (ILR) for transferring water from surplus basins to deficit basins/areas in 1980. National Water Development Agency (NWDA) has been entrusted with the work of Interlinking of Rivers under the NPP. 30 ILR projects have  been  identified  under  the  NPP  with  two  components,  viz;  Himalayan  Component  (14  projects)  and Peninsular Component (16 projects). Detailed Project Reports (DPRs) of 11 link projects, Feasibility Reports (FRs) of 26 link projects and Pre-Feasibility Reports (PFRs) of 30 link projects have been completed.

Details of the status of ILR projects under the NPP are given at Annexure-I .

(c) Ken-Betwa Link Project (KBLP) is the first ILR project under the NPP, implementation of which has started  after  the  approval  accorded  by  the  Union  Cabinet  in  December,  2021.   The  project  is  planned  to  be completed by March 2030.

(d) The State of Bihar bears the brunt of floods is on account of increased discharge in rivers of North Bihar like  Gandak,  Burhi  Gandak,  Bagmati,  Kamla,  Kosi,  and  Mahananda  due  to  heavy  rainfall  in  the  upper catchment areas, which mainly lie in Nepal.

(e) Under  the  NPP,  six  ILR  projects  benefit  the  State  of  Bihar.  Apart  from  this,  ten  intra-State  link proposals were also received by NWDA from the Government of Bihar. PFRs of these ten intra-State links were prepared by the NWDA, out of which, three links have been found technically feasible. Details of ILR

and the three intra-State link projects found technically feasible, concerning the State of Bihar are attached in Annexure - II.

For ILR projects, the schedule of completion depends upon the party States arriving at a consensus for the  respective  ILR  projects  and  signing  of  the  link  specific  Memorandum  of  Agreements  (MoAs)  for  their implementation.

As for the intra-State links, techno-economic viability in respect of Kosi-Mechi intra-State link project has been accepted by the Advisory Committee of Department of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation (DoWR,RD&GR)  in its meeting held on 08.03.2024 for an estimated cost of Rs. 6,282.32 crore,  at  Price  Level  2022-23.  Investment  clearance  for  the  project  has  been  subsequently  accorded  by  the DoWR, RD & GR and thereafter, the project has been duly recommended by the Public Investment Board (PIB) in its meeting held on 21.11.2024 for inclusion of the project under the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana - Accelerated Irrigation Benefit Programme (PMKSY-AIBP).

Further,  as  per  the  information  available,  three  numbers  of  intra-State  link  projects,  viz;  Bagmati  Burhi  Gandak  River  Link  (Belwadhar),  Bagmati-  Burhi  Gandak  (Shanti  Dhar)  and  Gandak-  Akali  Nala (Chhadi) - Gandaki - Mahi - Ganga link are under execution by the Government of Bihar and these projects are scheduled to be completed by 2025.

***

## ANNEXURE-I

ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (a) & (b) OF UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 520 TO BE ANSWERED IN LOK SABHA ON 06.02.2025 REGARDING 'INTER-LINKING OF RIVERS IN BIHAR'.

## DETAILS AND CURRENT STATUS OF ILR PROJECTS UNDER THE NPP

## PENINSULAR COMPONENT

|   Sl. No | Name                                                                       | States benefited                  | Status                                         |
|----------|----------------------------------------------------------------------------|-----------------------------------|------------------------------------------------|
|        1 | a. Mahanadi (Manibhadra) - Godavari (Dowlaiswaram)link                     | Andhra Pradesh (AP) and Odisha    | FR completed                                   |
|        1 | b. Alternate Mahanadi (Barmul) - Rushikulya - Godavari (Dowlaiswaram) link | AP and Odisha                     | FR completed                                   |
|        2 | Godavari (Polavaram) - Krishna (Vijayawada) link@                          | AP                                | FR completed                                   |
|        3 | a. Godavari (Inchampalli) - Krishna (Nagarjunasagar)link                   | Telangana                         | FR completed                                   |
|        3 | b. Alternate Godavari (Inchampalli) - Krishna (Nagarjunasagar) link *      | Telangana                         | DPR completed                                  |
|        4 | Godavari (Inchampalli/ SSMPP) - Krishna (Pulichintala) link                | Telangana and AP                  | DPR completed                                  |
|        5 | a. Krishna (Nagarjunasagar) - Pennar (Somasila ) link                      | AP                                | FR completed                                   |
|        5 | b. Alternate Krishna (Nagarjunasagar) - Pennar (Somasila ) link *          | AP                                | DPR completed                                  |
|        6 | Krishna (Srisailam) - Pennar link                                          | AP                                | Draft DPR completed                            |
|        7 | Krishna (Almatti) - Pennar link                                            | AP and Karnataka                  | Draft DPR completed                            |
|        8 | a. Pennar (Somasila) - Cauvery (Grand Anicut) link                         | AP, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry     | FR completed                                   |
|        8 | b. Alternate Pennar (Somasila) - Cauvery (Grand Anicut) link *             | AP, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry     | DPR completed                                  |
|        9 | Cauvery (Kattalai) - Vaigai -Gundar link                                   | Tamil Nadu                        | DPR completed                                  |
|       10 | a. Parbati -Kalisindh - Chambal link                                       | Madhya Pradesh (MP) and Rajasthan | FR completed                                   |
|       10 | b. Modified Parbati - Kalisindh-Chambal link (duly integrated with ERCP)   | MP and Rajasthan                  | Draft PFR completed                            |
|       11 | Damanganga - Pinjal link                                                   | Maharashtra                       | DPR completed                                  |
|       12 | Par-Tapi-Narmada link                                                      | Gujarat and Maharashtra           | DPR completed                                  |
|       13 | Ken-Betwa link                                                             | Uttar Pradesh (UP) and MP         | DPR completed& project is under implementation |
|       14 | Pamba - Achankovil - Vaippar link                                          | Tamil Nadu and Kerala             | FR completed                                   |
|       15 | Bedti - Varda link@@                                                       | Karnataka                         | DPR completed                                  |
|       16 | Netravati - Hemavati link**                                                | Karnataka                         | PFR completed                                  |

* Due to pending consensus on Manibhadra and Inchampalli dams, Alternate study to divert unutilized waters  of  Godavari  river  was  carried  out  and  DPR  of  Godavari  (Inchampalli/  Janampet)  -  Krishna (Nagarjunasagar)  -  Pennar  (Somasila)  -  Cauvery  (Grand  Anicut)  link  projects  was  completed. Godavari- Cauvery (Grand Anicut) link project has been prepared comprising of Godavari (Inchampalli / Janampet) -Krishna (Nagarjunasagar), Krishna (Nagarjunasagar) -Pennar (Somasila) and Pennar(Somasila)-Cauvery(Grand Anicut) link projects.

** Further studies are not taken up since after implementation of Yettinahole project by  Govt. of Karnataka, no surplus water is available in Netravati basin for diversion through this link.

- @ Godavari  (Polavaram)  -  Krishna  (Vijayawada)  link  -  The  project  has  been  taken  up  by Government of Andhra Pradesh.
- @@ Bedti  -  Varda  link  -  DPR  was  prepared  directly  after  preparation  of  its  PFR,  no  FR  was prepared.

## HIMALAYAN COMPONENT

|   Sl. No | Name                                                   | States / Countries benefited          | Status                                        |
|----------|--------------------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------|-----------------------------------------------|
|        1 | Kosi-Mechi link                                        | Bihar and Nepal                       | PFR completed                                 |
|        2 | Kosi-Ghaghra link                                      | Bihar, UP and Nepal                   | FR completed                                  |
|        3 | Gandak - Ganga link                                    | UP and Nepal                          | FR completed                                  |
|        4 | Ghaghra - Yamuna link                                  | UP and Nepal                          | Draft FR completed                            |
|        5 | Sarda - Yamuna link                                    | UP and Uttarakhand                    | FR completed                                  |
|        6 | Yamuna-Rajasthanlink                                   | Haryana and Rajasthan                 | FR completed                                  |
|        7 | Rajasthan-Sabarmatilink                                | Rajasthan and Gujarat                 | FR completed                                  |
|        8 | Chunar-Sone Barrage link                               | Bihar and UP                          | Draft FR completed                            |
|        9 | Sone Dam - Southern Tributaries of Ganga link          | Bihar and Jharkhand                   | Draft FR completed                            |
|       10 | Manas-Sankosh-Tista- Ganga (M-S-T-G) link              | Assam, West Bengal (WB) and Bihar     | FR completed                                  |
|       11 | Jogighopa-Tista-Farakka link (Alternative to M-S-T- G) | Assam, WBand Bihar                    | PFR completed (The proposal has been dropped) |
|       12 | Farakka-Sundarbanslink                                 | WB                                    | FR completed                                  |
|       13 | Ganga(Farakka) - Damodar- Subarnarekha link            | WB, Odisha and Jharkhand              | FR completed                                  |
|       14 | Subarnarekha-MahanadilinkWBand Odisha                  | Subarnarekha-MahanadilinkWBand Odisha | FR completed                                  |

ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (e) OF UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 520 TO BE ANSWERED IN LOK SABHA ON 06.02.2025 REGARDING 'INTER-LINKING OF RIVERS IN BIHAR'.

## DETAILS OF ILR PROJECTS CONCERNING BIHAR

|   Sl.No | Name                                                   | States / Countries benefited   | Status                                        |
|---------|--------------------------------------------------------|--------------------------------|-----------------------------------------------|
|       1 | Kosi-Mechi ILR project                                 | Bihar and Nepal                | PFR completed                                 |
|       2 | Kosi - Ghaghra link                                    | Bihar, UP and Nepal            | FR completed                                  |
|       3 | Chunar-Sone Barrage link                               | Bihar and UP                   | Draft FR completed                            |
|       4 | Sone Dam - Southern Tributaries of Ganga link          | Bihar and Jharkhand            | Draft FR completed                            |
|       5 | Manas-Sankosh-Tista- Ganga (M-S-T-G) link              | Assam, WBand Bihar             | FR completed                                  |
|       6 | Jogighopa-Tista-Farakka link (Alternative to M-S- T-G) | Assam, WBand Bihar             | PFR completed (The proposal has been dropped) |

## DETAILS OF INTRA-STATE LINK PROPOSALS RECEIVED FROM GOVERNMENT OF BIHAR, WHICH WERE FOUND FEASIBLE

|   S.No | Name of Intra-State link                            | Rivers                             | Present status of PFR /DPR   |
|--------|-----------------------------------------------------|------------------------------------|------------------------------|
|      1 | Kosi-Mechi intra-State link[entirely lies in India] | Kosi and Mechi                     | DPR completed.               |
|      2 | Burhi Gandak- Noon- Baya-Ganga                      | Burhi Gandak ,Noon, Baya and Ganga | DPR completed,.              |
|      3 | Kosi - Ganga                                        | Kosi and Ganga                     | PFR completed                |

*****