CM Fadnavis announces river linking projects to make Maha drought‑free

Mumbai, Aug 13 (IANS) Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday said the Government of Maharashtra will implement ambitious river‑linking projects to make all regions of the state drought‑free through integrated water management.

Speaking at the 21st anniversary event of the Maharashtra Water Resources Regulatory Authority (MWRRA), he announced that actual work on these projects will commence either late this year or early next year, following final approval from the Central Water Commission (CWC).

Fadnavis highlighted that diverting surplus water from west‑flowing rivers that currently drain into the Arabian Sea into the Godavari basin could balance the water‑deficient regions of North Maharashtra and Marathwada. He said the vision of making these drought‑prone regions water‑secure is gradually becoming a reality. While several projects have already received approval, others are at the Detailed Project Report (DPR) stage. Maharashtra is the first state in the country to execute work on this scale, he added.

He recalled that Maharashtra became the first state in India to establish a Water Resources Regulatory Authority. By combining individual plans for six major basins, Godavari, Krishna, Tapi, Narmada, west‑flowing rivers, and Mahanadi, the state created its comprehensive Integrated Water Plan in October 2018. The integrated plan was updated in 2024 to incorporate major river‑linking initiatives formally. Ambitious projects like the Wainganga‑Nalganga river‑link will play a crucial role in eliminating drought conditions across the Vidarbha region, he remarked.

To maintain Maharashtra’s leadership in water resource management, the Chief Minister urged the Water Resources Department and the Department of Agriculture to work in close coordination. He stressed the need for optimal crop patterns and water efficiency to maximise the state’s 40 lakh hectares of irrigation potential. He recalled that in 2017, open‑canal systems were phased out in favour of Pipe Distribution Networks (PDN), which successfully saved enough water to supply severely drought‑prone pockets like Man‑Khatav.

Looking ahead, he emphasised the formulation of a 30‑to‑40‑year Integrated Water Plan especially for the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) and Pune Metropolitan Region (PMR) to manage drinking, agricultural, and industrial water demands. He spoke of setting up systems for tertiary treatment of municipal wastewater to supply data centres through private investment partnerships and utilising modern technology to enable year‑round agricultural water supply in arid zones.

A key highlight of the event was the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited and the Maharashtra Water Resources Regulatory Authority (MWRRA). The agreement, signed by Captain Vasudev Puranik (Director, Mazagon Dock) and Shwetali Thackeray (Chairperson, MWRRA), focuses on evaluating the impact of water tariffs, assessing the current project status, and implementing remedial measures, according to the government release.

During the session, Water Resources Minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil noted that although MWRRA was established in 2005, major operational momentum was gained after 2015 when steps were taken to draft the Integrated Water Plan, starting with the Godavari river basin, which covers nearly 50 per cent of the state’s rivers and tributaries.

Minister Girish Mahajan added that under Chief Minister Fadnavis’ leadership, the 2018 water plan was materialised to ensure that water resources effectively reach the last farmer in the state.

–IANS

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