Centre not granting environmental clearance to Mahadayi project, says CM Siddaramaiah
Hubballi (Karnataka), May 4 (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Sunday accused the Centre of withhoding environmental clearance for the Mahadayi river project, which he said is crucial to resolving the water crisis in North Karnataka region, particularly in the twin cities of Hubballi and Dharwad.
Speaking to reporters here, Siddaramaiah attacked Union Minister for Food and Public Distribution Pralhad Joshi, who represents the Dharwad constituency, alleging that the BJP leader has "failed" to take any steps to ensure the project’s completion.
“He is an important Minister in the Centre. He should get us environmental clearance. How many times we have pleaded to the Centre. We have given letter to the Centre, appealed to them and me and Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar went to New Delhi several times,” the CM said.
He said that calling an all-party meeting is only a small part of the solution, and that for the Mahadayi project to move forward, the central government must grant environmental clearance.
“Environment clearance is the only road block. Scared of Goa, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is not giving it (environmental clearance) to us. Pralhad Joshi does not talk there,” Siddaramaiah alleged.
Goa and Karnataka are at loggerheads over diversion of water from the Mahadayi river through the construction of dams by the latter on the river’s tributaries, Kalasa and Banduri.
The Goa government has contended that Karnataka cannot divert water from the Mahadayi river, as it passes through the Mahadayi Wildlife Sanctuary, which is located downstream in North Goa.
The Centre approved a Detailed Project Report (DPR) submitted by Karnataka for the construction of the two dams two years ago.
Regarding the completion of two years of his government in Karnataka, the Chief Minister said a public event will be held on May 20 at Vijayanagara district.
“We will hold a public meeting in Vijayanagara where we will tell people about the work done by our government in the past two years,” Siddaramaiah said.
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Cong takes swipe at PM over India not being part of US-led 'Pax Silica' grouping
New Delh (PTI) The Congress on Saturday said it is perhaps not very surprising that India is not part of a US-led strategic initiative to build a secure silicon supply chain, given the "sharp downturn" in the Trump-Modi ties, and asserted that it would have been to "our advantage if we had been part of this group".
Congress general secretary in charge of communications Jairam Ramesh took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying the news of India not being part of the group comes after the PM had enthusiastically posted on social media about a telephone call with his "once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC".
In a lengthy post on X, Ramesh said, "According to some news reports, the US has excluded India from a nine-nation initiative it has launched to reduce Chinese control on high-tech supply chains. The agreement is called Pax Silica, clearly as a counter to Pax Sinica. The nations included (for the moment at least) are the US, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia."
"Given the sharp downturn in the Trump-Modi ties since May 10th, 2025, it is perhaps not very surprising that India has not been included. Undoubtedly, it would have been to our advantage if we had been part of this group."
"This news comes a day after the PM had enthusiastically posted on his telephone call with his once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC," the Congress leader asserted.
The new US-led strategic initiative, rooted in deep cooperation with trusted allies, has been launched to build a secure and innovation-driven silicon supply chain.
According to the US State Department, the initiative called 'Pax Silica' aims to reduce coercive dependencies, protect the materials and capabilities foundational to artificial intelligence (AI), and ensure aligned nations can develop and deploy transformative technologies at scale.
The initiative includes Japan, South Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia. With the exception of India, all other QUAD countries -- Japan, Australia and the US -- are part of the new initiative.
New Delhi will host the India-AI Impact Summit 2026 on February 19-20, focusing on the principles of 'People, Planet, and Progress'. The summit, announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the France AI Action Summit, will be the first-ever global AI summit hosted in the Global South.
Prime Minister Modi and US President Trump on Thursday discussed ways to sustain momentum in the bilateral economic partnership in a phone conversation amid signs of the two sides inching closer to firming up a much-awaited trade deal.
The phone call between the two leaders came on a day Indian and American negotiators concluded two-day talks on the proposed bilateral trade agreement that is expected to provide relief to India from the Trump administration's whopping 50 per cent tariffs on Indian goods.
In a social media post, Modi had described the conversation as "warm and engaging".
"We reviewed the progress in our bilateral relations and discussed regional and international developments. India and the US will continue to work together for global peace, stability and prosperity," Modi had said without making any reference to trade ties.
