Context: After a prolonged legal battle in a designated Mahanadi Water Disputes Tribunal over sharing of the Mahanadi river water, Odisha and Chhattisgarh have expressed willingness to resolve the dispute amicably between themselves.
Relevance of the Topic: Prelims: Key provision for resolution of Inter-State River Water Dispute.
Inter-State River Water Dispute
- Article 262 of the Constitution provides for the adjudication of inter-state water disputes. It makes two provisions:
- Parliament may by law provide for the adjudication of any dispute or complaint with respect to the use, distribution and control of waters of any inter-state river and river valley.
- Parliament may also provide that neither the Supreme Court nor any other court is to exercise jurisdiction in respect of any such dispute or complaint.
Under this provision, the Parliament has enacted two laws:
1. The River Boards Act 1956:
- The Act provides for the establishment of river boards for the regulation and development of inter-state river and river valleys.
- A river board is established by the Central government on the request of the state governments concerned to advise them.
2. Inter-State River Water Disputes Act 1956:
- The Inter-State River Water Disputes Act empowers the Central government to set up an ad hoc tribunal for the adjudication of a dispute between two or more states in relation to the waters of an inter-state river or river valley.
- The decision of the tribunal would be final and binding on the parties to the dispute.
- The Supreme Court nor any other court does not have jurisdiction in respect of any water dispute which may be referred to such a tribunal under this Act.
Mahanadi River System
- Mahanadi river rises in the Sihawa hills, Chhattisgarh. This is south of the Amarkantak Plateau region.
- Basin states: Chhattisgarh and Odisha and comparatively smaller portions of Jharkhand, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh, draining an area of 1,41,589 sq. kms. The river drains into the Bay of Bengal.
- The Mahanadi basin is geographically bounded by:
- Central India hills on the north
- Eastern Ghats on the south and east
- Maikal range in the west.
- Major Dams:
- Hirakud Dam (Odisha): One of the longest earthen dams in the world.
- Hasdeo Bango & Arpa Projects (Chhattisgarh).
| Left bank Tributary | Right bank Tributary |
| Seonath | Ong |
| Hasdeo | Tel |
| Mand | Jonk |
| Ib |
Mahanadi Water Disputes Tribunal:
- Mahanadi River Dispute: Odisha alleges that the upper riparian state Chhattisgarh had "illegally" constructed a number of barrages across the river and its tributaries, which has seriously affected inflow into the Hirakud reservoir in Odisha, particularly in the non-monsoon seasons.
- The Mahanadi Water Disputes Tribunal was established in 2018. The proceedings continued between 2018 and 2023 with data submissions, arguments, and inspections from both states.
It is to be noted that no inter-state water dispute in the country has ever been resolved entirely through tribunal proceedings. Hence, the move towards amicable resolution of the inter-state river water dispute between Odisha and Chhattisgarh is a step in the right direction.