Karnataka, Centre spar over drinking water projects

The ongoing row between Karnataka and the Modi government over fiscal federalism has taken another turn, with the state accusing the Centre of non-cooperation over the implementation of drinking water projects, including those at Yettinahole, Mekedatu and Upper Bhadra.

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has launched a scathing attack on the Centre for not releasing Rs.5,300 crore to the state for the Upper Bhadra Project (UBP) announced in the 2023 budget by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman,

Key water project

The Upper Bhadra Project, a significant lift irrigation scheme being implemented in the central region of Karnataka, aims to provide sustainable irrigation during the kharif season. Additionally, it seeks to recharge the groundwater table and supply drinking water to the drought-prone taluks of Chikmagalur Chitradurga, Tumkur and Davanagere in the region.

The Yettinahole Integrated Drinking Water Project (YIDW) is one of the flagship projects of Krishna Neeravari Nigam Ltd (KNNL), designed to quench the thirst of nearly seven million people in the perennially drought-prone districts of Karnataka where groundwater levels are hitting an all-time low in recent years.

Water needs of Bengaluru

The Mekedatu project is a multipurpose project involving the construction of a balancing reservoir near Kanakapura in Ramanagara district. Its primary objective is to provide drinking water to Bengaluru and neighbouring areas totalling 4.75 TMC and generate 400 MW of power.

If implemented, the project will help in meeting the growing demand for drinking water in the Karnataka capital as well as adjoining areas which are facing water scarcity. According to the government, the project will help regulate the flow of water to prevent floods and droughts, benefiting farmers and communities.

The Yettinahole project

In August last year, Deputy Chief Minister and Water Resources Minister DK Shivakumar set a 100-day deadline to complete the first phase of the ambitious Yettinahole project. He had directed the contractors and engineers to lift the water on a trial basis by December.

But even after almost a year, the project has been limping. The Congress government in Karnataka attributes the delay to the apathy of the Union government and blames the Centre for not releasing Rs.5,300 crore promised in the 2023-24 Union Budget.

Call to modify project

In the previous session of the Assembly, responding to a question by HK Suresh (BJP) on the slow progress of the Yettinahole project, Shivakumar said that of the 5.24 km tunnel near Ranaghat, 2.4 km has been completed.

TB Jayachandra, MLA and the state government’s representative in New Delhi, in May demanded that the government modify the Yettinahole drinking water scheme to ensure that tanks in Sira taluk of Tumkur district are filled.

Jayachandra, who chaired a meeting with the water resources department, said the provision of drinking water to Sira in line with the project was not useful.

“Instead, 200 tanks in Sira town should be filled under the project. This will sustainability in supply of water to residents of the taluk.”

Water crisis and Shivakumar

Meanwhile, last month, stung by the water crisis, Shivakumar swung into action. He chalked out a detailed plan to pump water through the Yettinahole project from Nethravathi river and to begin the operations on a trial basis from July.

However, the monsoon provided some relief to Shivakumar. Sources in the water resources department said the government needs about 500 acres of forest land at 20 locations along 260 km locations. In return, the forest department needs to be compensated with revenue land.

Now, the forest department has agreed to forsake 500 acres of land critical for the project. Recently, Shivakumar told the media that in return for the forest land, the revenue department will return an equal quantity of area.

Pumping water

With the lift component already in place, Shivakumar has directed his team to consult the energy department and begin pumping operations. According to him, the output is expected to flow for at least 48 km from the source (Nethravathi).

However, since water can be pumped only for three months a year (in the monsoon), Shivakukar has decided to form a four-member technical committee to provide a round-the-year solution and ensure water is not wasted.

When the project was first approved, the cost was estimated at Rs.8,323 crores. In 2014, when the Congress came to power, the revised estimated cost was Rs 12,912.36 crore. The cost has escalated mainly owing to the high cost of land acquisition under the 2013 Act.

Cost of acquiring land

The cost of the land acquisition has quadrupled. Now the revised estimate is Rs. 23,251 crores. To prove that its main agenda is ‘development’, the BJP promised to complete the Yettinahole project in the run-up to last year’s Assembly elections which it badly lost.

The decade-old ambitious Yettinahole Water Diversion Project got a new lease of life when the Basavaraja Bommai-led BJP government revised the estimates of Rs.23,251 crore for the Yettinahole Drinking Water Project. This amounted to a 179 per cent rise in the project cost.

It has been almost a decade since the ambitious yet controversial YWDP was approved in July 2012. Marred by protests and opposition from locals, greens and politicians, the project implementing agency, the VisvesvarayaJala Nigam Ltd (VJNL), has achieved nearly 60 per cent of the work, say officials in the irrigation department.

Kumaraswamy in the picture

Blaming the Centre for not cooperating in implementing the Mekedatu project, Siddaramaiah said his government was ready to construct the Mekedatu Balancing Reservoir project across the Cauvery if the Centre gave its approval.

He urged Union Steel Minister HD Kumaraswamy to urge Prime Minister Narendra Modi to approve the project if he was interested in serving the people of Mandya district. But Kumaraswamy asked Siddaramaiah to hold talks with Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin.

In response to Kumaraswamy’s suggestion, Shivakumar said: “Mekedatu dam is key to securing the future of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu farmers and the MP representing the region and alliance partner of NDA has to take the initiative in the implementation of the project.”