Lok Sabha Question No. 4473 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-03-27
Subject: Objection against Interlinking of Rivers
Ministry: JAL SHAKTI
Asked by: Adv. Adoor Prakash

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF JAL SHAKTI

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

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4473

ANSWERED ON 27.03.2025

## OBJECTION AGAINST INTERLINKING OF RIVERS

## 4473. ADV. ADOOR PRAKASH

Will the Minister of JAL SHAKTI be pleased to state:

(a) the present status of the implementation of the project for interlinking of rivers;

(b) whether the State Government of Kerala has raised concerns and objection against interlinking of rivers in the State and if so, the details thereof;

(c) whether the Union Government has received any communication from the State Government of Kerala in this regard; and

(d) if so, the details thereof and the response of the Government thereto?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR JAL SHAKTI

## ( SHRI RAJ BHUSHAN CHOUDHARY )

(a) In  1980,  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. National Water Development Agency  (NWDA)  has  been  entrusted  with  the  work  of  ILR  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 projects, Feasibility Reports (FRs) of 26 projects and Pre-Feasibility Report (PFRs) of all 30 ILR projects under the NPP have been completed. The Ken-Betwa Link Project (KBLP) is the first ILR project under the NPP, implementation of which has started. Detailed status of ILR Projects under the NPP is given at Annexure.

(b) to (d) NWDA had earlier prepared the FR of this link project and shared it with the States of Kerala and  Tamil  Nadu.  The  State  Government  of  Kerala  has  raised  concerns  regarding  the  Pamba-AchankovilVaippar (PAV) link project, vide a communication dated 12.12.2023, stating that the Pamba and Achankovil are  intra-State  rivers  of  Kerala  and  the  State  Government  is  not  interested  in  pursuing  the  PambaAchankovil-Vaippar (PAV) link project.  Government of India has been keenly pursuing the ILR programme across the country in a consultative mode. Accordingly,  NWDA has communicated to the party States to take up the work of DPR of this link project with their mutual consent.

***

## ANNEXURE

## ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (a) OF UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4473 TO BE  ANSWERED  IN  LOK  SABHA  ON  27.03.2025  REGARDING  'OBJECTION  AGAINST INTERLINKING OF RIVERS'

## DETAILED STATUS OF ILR PROJECTS UNDER THE NPP AND THEIR BENEFITS

## Peninsular Component

|   Sl.No | Name                                                                                                                             | States benefited                                  | Status                                 |
|---------|----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------------|----------------------------------------|
|       1 | Mahanadi (Manibhadra) - Godavari (Dowlaiswaram) link                                                                             | Andhra Pradesh (AP) and Odisha                    | FR completed                           |
|       1 | 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 b.) Alternate Godavari (Inchampalli) - Krishna (Nagarjunasagar) link * | Telangana Telangana                               | FR completed 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                                                                                                  | Karnataka AP                                      | 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                                          | DPR completed                          |
|       8 | b. Alternate Pennar (Somasila) - Cauvery (Grand Anicut) link *                                                                   | Nadu                                              | DPR completed                          |
|       8 | b. Alternate Pennar (Somasila) - Cauvery (Grand Anicut) link *                                                                   | 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 (only water supply to Mumbai)         | DPR completed                          |
|      12 | Par-Tapi-Narmada link                                                                                                            | Gujarat                                           | DPR completed                          |
|      13 | Ken-Betwa link                                                                                                                   | Maharashtra Uttar Pradesh (UP) and Madhya Pradesh | DPR completed & implementation started |
|      14 | Pamba - Achankovil - Vaippar link                                                                                                | Tamil Nadu                                        | 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 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.

@  Godavari (Polavaram)- Krishna (Vijayawada) Link- the project has been taken up by Government of AP.

@@ Bedti - Varda Link- DPR was prepared directly after preparation of its PFR, no FR was prepared.

- ** 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.

## Himalayan Component

|    | Sl.NoName                                             | 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-Rajasthan link                                 | Haryana and Rajasthan             | FR completed                                  |
|  7 | Rajasthan-Sabarmati link                              | 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-Sundarbans link                               | WB                                | FR completed                                  |
| 13 | Ganga(Farakka) - Damodar- Subarnarekha link           | WB, Odisha and Jharkhand          | FR completed                                  |
| 14 | Subarnarekha-Mahanadi link                            | WBand Odisha                      | FR completed                                  |

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