Bhubaneswar: The state government today alleged that the neighbour Chhattisgarh was giving wrong information on the flow of water to Hirakud reservoir in the downstream of Mahanadi.
“It is unfortunate that Chhattisgarh has been spreading wrong information about the gate operation at Kalma barrage. The gates are operated in improper manner, with an intention to arbitrarily restrict the water flow and by this action the inflow to the Hirakud reservoir is reducing,” Orissa’s Water Resources Engineer-in-Chief S K Jain told reporters.
The state government reacted to a day back statement of Chhattisgarh Water Resources minister Brijmohan Agarwal who stated that the flow of water in river Mahanadi was normal and there had been no stoppage of water at Kalma barrage.
“Today, at the end of the non-monsoon, the scenario in the reduction of inflow to Hirakud reservoir is amply clear from the observation recorded at the Hirakud dam site,” Jain said adding that inflow to the reservoir which has been reduced by 79.37 per cent in May last in comparison to 2013-14 and 2015-16.
Alleging that the Chhattisgarh government’s act of closing the gates at Kalma barrage caused reduction in water flow to Hirakud reservoir, Jain said, “In the name of changing gate bays from time to time, which is frequently done by switching amongst the 66 number of gates, they resort to complete closure of water flow for sizeable time period.”
“In the name of testing gates, gates closure option has been adopted. The pond level is frequently changing as per the information available to Hirakud Dam authorities. Because of these actions, the inflow to Hirakud reservoir has reduced considerably,” Jain said.
Meanwhile, senior BJP leader and Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said that he would take up the matter with Central Water Commission. Pradhan also said that he would also urge the Union Water Resources Ministry and Central Water Commission to ensure that free flow of water in Mahanadi river through Orissa is not affected.
However, another Union minister from Orissa Jual Oram raised suspicion on the state government’s “sincerity” on Mahanadi issue. He alleged the state government did not want to resolve the matter and kept the dispute alive for political gain.
Earlier, Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik in a letter to his Chhattisgarh counterpart had requested to ensure free flow of water down the streams of Mahanadi river by opening the gates of Kalma barrage, one of the six major barrages allegedly constructed unilaterally by the neighbouring state.
Press Trust of India