Mhadei dispute: Goa seeks action against Karnataka officials
Panaji, Aug 20 : In a disobedience petition filed before the Mhadei Inter-state Water Disputes Tribunal in the national capital, the Goa government has sought the arrest of officials of the Karnataka government for violation of the adjudicating body's orders.
The petition comes a week after the Tribunal in its award allotted 13.42 thousand million cubic feet (tmcft) water to Karnataka, resolving a decades-old dispute primarily between Goa and Karnataka, as well as Maharashtra government's claim over sharing of water from the Mhadei river, also known as the Mahadayi in Karnataka.
"In our prayer, we have prayed for the arrest of the officials of Karnataka who are involved in these violations and attachment of properties of the State of Karnataka," state's Advocate General Dattaprasad Lawande told reporters in Panaji.
He also said that the disobedience petition was filed under Rule 2A of the Civil Procedure Code before the Tribunal.
The Goa government has maintained that despite an injunction ordered by the Tribunal against actual diversion of the Mhadei water -- before the award was delivered -- Karnataka had already started diversion of the water using canals at Kalsa village, located on the Goa-Karnataka border.
The Goa government now wants the officials responsible for "illegally" diverting the water arrested and the canals built by them attached by the Tribunal.
Last week, the Tribunal which was hearing a dispute between Goa, Karnataka and Maharashtra over sharing of water from the Mhadei river had allotted 13.42 tmcft (including 7.56 tmcft for diversion into the depleted Malaprabha river basin) from the Mhadei river basin to Karnataka, as against 36.55 tmcft demanded by the southern state, while also allotting 1.33 tmcft to Maharashtra.
Mhadei river is known as a lifeline in the northern parts of the state. It originates in Karnataka and meets the Arabian Sea in Panaji in Goa, while briefly flowing through the territory of Maharashtra.
While 78 per cent of the basin of the Mhadei river lies in Goa, 42.79 per cent of the basin is located in Karnataka and a small portion comes under Maharashtra.
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Annamalai withdraws from race for BJP Tamil Nadu President’s post, wishes well for successor
Coimbatore: BJP Tamil Nadu President K Annamalai announced on Friday that he was not in the race for the post of the state chief of the party, adding that he had no intention of retaining his position as state president.
Addressing reporters here, Annamalai said that he was withdrawing in the best interests of the party, firmly refusing to comment on political speculation. He also wished well for his successor to the top post of the party in Tamil Nadu.
He stated that several members had contributed to the growth of the party and that the BJP was a party where an election and not competition was held any post in the party.
