Maharashtra's objection on Alamatti dam height is baseless: Minister MB Patil
Bengaluru, Aug 1 (PTI): Karnataka Industries Minister M B Patil on Friday dismissed Maharashtra's claim that raising the height of the Alamatti dam on the Krishna river would cause floods in Sangli and Kolhapur districts.
Asserting that this argument has already been rejected by the Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal, the Supreme Court, and even in the Lok Sabha, he termed Maharashtra's objection as "politically motivated".
The Minister was reacting to Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis requesting the Union government to stop Karnataka from raising the height of Almatti Dam on the Krishna river, saying it would worsen the floods in southern Maharashtra's Sangli and Kolhapur districts.
Fadnavis has written a letter to Union Jal Shakti Minister C R Patil in this regard.
"Sangli and surrounding regions in Maharashtra witnessed severe floods in 1964, 1976, 1994 and 1997 — all before the construction of the Alamatti dam. Moreover, as early as the year 2000, the Supreme Court had ruled that Karnataka is entitled to raise the height of the dam to 524.256 metres," Patil, who had served as the Water Resources Minister in the past, said.
He further pointed out that Maharashtra had raised the matter again in 2005 before the Krishna Water Tribunal, which also rejected the claim.
"The Tribunal, in its detailed reports of 2010 and 2013, clearly stated that the Alamatti dam was not responsible for floods in Sangli and Kolhapur. It even considered the impact of the Hipparagi dam in this context but found no basis for Maharashtra's claim. No state has challenged the verdict of the second Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal constituted to examine such matters," he said in a statement.
Noting that even the erstwhile unified Andhra Pradesh had once opposed the raising of Alamatti's height, claiming it would affect its share of water, Patil said that, too, was dismissed.
"Maharashtra's current objection is politically motivated. Having served as Water Resources Minister for five years, I have complete clarity on the issue," he said.
Claiming that rampant encroachment on catchment areas in Sangli district was a more credible reason for flooding and that he possessed a report on the matter, the Minister urged the Maharashtra government to focus on resolving such issues rather than obstructing Karnataka's development initiatives.
He also stated that he would hand over all relevant documents to the current Karnataka Water Resources Minister and Deputy CM D K Shivakumar. "Our state will give a befitting reply to Maharashtra's objections," he added.
Stating that the Water Resources Minister will respond to Maharashtra's objections, Home Minister G Parameshwara told reporters, protecting Karnataka's interest was important, and increasing the height of the Alamatti dam would help Karnataka store its share of water.
The government will take all necessary measures to protect the state's interest and stress this before the Centre and other states, he said.
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Congress misleading public on National Herald case, matter still in court: BJP
New Delhi (PTI): The BJP on Wednesday accused the Congress of running misleading propaganda over the trial court's decision in the National Herald case and said the court refused to take cognisance of the complaint but did not set aside the case.
The case is still pending trial in the Delhi High Court, and the trial court in its order on Tuesday said that the Enforcement Directorate (ED) can continue its investigation, BJP national spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia asserted.
"The court yesterday (Tuesday) said that since it is a private complaint and no FIR has been lodged, it will not take cognizance of it. It's a technical matter. The court also said that ED can continue its investigation further. The court did not set it aside," Bhatia told a press conference at the BJP headquarters here
"Its trial is still going on. Sonia Gandhi is still Accused Number-1 and Rahul Gandhi Accused Number-2," the BJP spokesperson said, alleging, "The Gandhi family thrives on deceit, deception, and propaganda."
