Incidentally, today is World Oceans Day. The oceans remain live as long as rivers keep flowing into them. Oceans give us innumerable things, most of them life-supporting, including salt and highly-nutrient aquatic animal and plant species. Oceans give us the most affordable base for navigation. Shipping is the cheapest and least-polluting mode of international transport. But unfortunately, some stubborn inland regimes of federal India are blocking river waters with the sole view to settling political scores. The great river Mahanadi originates mostly in Chhattisgarh and partly in Madhya Pradesh. It is indeed the lifeline of Odisha. Until the Chhattisgarh region was part of MP, it had no special fascination for the Mahanadi waters. But after it became a separate political entity, and more so because the downstream State Odisha was not a political ally, the BJP-led administration has purposefully built dams and barrages across the Mahanadi. Out of the six big and small, the Kalma barrage is the biggest culprit blocking water from flowing into the Odisha Mahanadi. Kalma is closest to the Odisha border and virtually locks up the river from benefitting the entire State of Odisha, which has the longest earth-made reservoir at Hirakud.
The Odisha authorities, including the Chief Minister, have been protesting vehemently against the construction of the barrages in Chhattisgarh without consensus. The media and other intellectual and watch forums had initially blamed the Odisha Government for having been careless and callous about what terrible things were happening on the Mahanadi upstream. But once the news reached them, they woke up too violently and staged big fight first by making dialogue attempts which failed miserably. Perhaps if both had BJP ingredients in them, the Mahanadi disaster would not have lasted this long.
Most unfortunately, God alone knows why the Nehru regime had snatched the ‘river disputes settlement affairs’ from the Supreme Court much against the spirit of the Constitution by making a strange Act which appears quite bad in law. The inter-State river disputes shall have to be referred to the Union Government which, if only it feels appropriate, may constitute a tribunal to decide what’s best for the warring parties. Even though much belatedly the Naveen administration has been crying hoarse against the construction of water blocking structures on the Mahanadi, the Chhattisgarh Government has considered it fit to turn a deaf ear or at the most placing the plea of ‘using less than its legitimate share of water’. But as of now, the truth has emerged. Chhattisgarh is being merciless on purpose. The CWC (Central Water Commission) has remained defunct ever since its inception in 1982. The Union Government is expected to pay heed to both the warring parties and constitute a ‘Tribunal’ without delay, but nothing to the effect has happened so far. Naveen Patnaik has personally written several appeal notes to the high–profile Prime Minister Narendra Modi who, many believe, is the first ever super PM of India who holds a world record of visiting 42 countries by staying out of office for 113 days in 25 months. Modi for sure has improved most international relations by promising all cooperation on every front, from ‘Make in India’ investments to fighting cross-border terror organisations’. Modi has been harping on a very believable pet slogan, ‘Acche Din’, meaning good days are coming very fast. He had also promised incalculable back money stashed abroad to be in people’s pocket in the first sixty days. Probably, he has done it secretly and will be distributing that soon! About the ‘two crore new jobs for the youth’ promise, he has not much to say as the jobs have not germinated as yet. The scrapping of Article 370 was an impracticably boastful one from day one, though. But Modi is kind of a hero for he is not a Hindu fundamentalist like many others in the ‘lotus’ fold. He does not scream against ‘beef eating’ or promotes fundraising for a new Ram temple in Ayodhya. But no one knows why something has gone wrong with him on the Odisha demand for a river tribunal to get its natural share of water in summer days to survive and keep the oceans live and glistening.
Raman Singh, the Chhattisgarh CM, now says Odisha should go to the CWC, which is lifeless for long. Odisha, after failing on the dialogue front, rightly petitioned the Supreme Court to direct the Union Government for setting up a tribunal without delay. Even more strangely, the saviour apex court too is not treating the matter on a fast-track mode as is the rule. Both critics and admires now say that Modi is partial to Chhattisgarh and unkind to Odisha. Some say he is jittery about Naveen’s magic tricks of winning elections. In the heart of his hearts, his only craving is to unseat Naveen or turn him an ally, both the possibilities look grimly slim. That Modi keeps loudly quiet about the Odisha appeal to get Mahanadi water is a very undemocratic stand by a larger-than-life Prime Minister. His followers in Odisha have no arguments to make in his favour nor have they any mechanism of defence. Dharmendra Pradhan and the spokespersons including Sajjan Sharma et al are forced to look for escape routes at TV shows as they do not find it easy to say the Centre is neglecting Odisha on the Mahanadi issue by playing a step-motherly role. Modi, who calls himself the ‘Pradhan Sevak’ (principal servant) of the people, must really conduct himself like one.
That the CWC is defunct and that the law says the Centre has to bring in place a tribunal has to be reiterated by the Pradhan Sevak of the largest democracy. Modi must have gained immense experience of statesmanship during his hurricane foreign tours.
All the same, most Odisha Ministers and BJD preachers do not seem to know the critical water flow statistics, particularly in summer times. Barring the ones who appear on TV as spokespersons, very few Odisha leaders are aware of how the Mahanadi flow has gone down alarmingly in the summer months. Chhattisgarh had declared at all times that Odisha would not suffer water scarcity because the ultra modern industrial outfits in Chhattisgarh, equipped with such wonder machines to let the water flow out into Mahanadi after being used only, not consumed at all like in dish washing, and then treated scientifically to convert it to portable quality. If such a claim were true, the summer months this year would not have marked a dangerous shortfall on record.
The Odisha BJP preachers and advocates like KV Singh Deo, Baxipatra and that ignorant yet too loud young Harichandan have no wits left to use to say a thing about why Modi as PM is keeping quiet instead of ordering for a tribunal. Modi as PM has to consider Chhattisgarh and Odisha on the same plane.
Sooner or later, the Supreme Court is expected to invoke the 1956 Act of tribunal formation to ensure justice for Odisha. By acting neutral, Modi may expect more acceptable results in the 2019 polls by converting the Naveen-soaked Odias BJP-feiendly. Most importantly, the oceans also shall not dry up.
lastly, Modi and his team may do good to know that on this day in 1936, the Indian State Broadcasting Station was renamed All India Radio (AIR). Popular PM Shri Narendra Modi uses this great wireless medium to share his ‘Man Ki Baat’ with all the buoyant young ones.
let the All India Radio be used by the PM to say to the world that Chhattisgarh and Odisha are going to hit a win-win situation by declaring that the “tribunal has come in place”. Odisha will have enough water and the oceans will not dry up!
(The writer is a core member of Transparency International, Odisha)