The BJP on Tuesday once again suggested to the State Government to refrain from showing ‘false’ innocence vis-à-vis the Kelo project in Chhattisgarh and try to resolve the Mahanadi water dispute with the neighbouring State through dialogues and legal and Constitutional procedures.
“A meeting had been held relating to the NOC for the Kelo project between the Water Resources Secretary and the Engineer-in-Chief at both the Secretariat and the Rajiv Bhavan on July 7, 2008. Besides, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had on May 2, 2017 submitted a reply in the State Assembly to a question regarding barrage constructions upstream Mahanadi in Chhattisgarh. But the Chief Minister has publicly stated that his Government didn’t know about construction of barrages in Mahanadi. The Chief Minister should refrain from showing false innocence in public,” said BJP State vice-president Sameer Mohanty at a Press meet held here.
Terming the Chief Minister as Miccha Tathyara Saudagar (merchant of false data), Mohanty said the Government should not do politics over the Mahanadi issue but take initiatives to resolve the issue though dialogues and legal and constitutional procedures.
He reiterated that the BJP is committed to ensure that adequate water flow in the Mahanadi during non-monsoon season. Meanwhile, senior BJP leader Bijay Mohapatra demanded that the Government should request the Centre for forming of River Board rather than a Joint Control Board to resolve Mahanadi issues. “Joint Control Board will be a toothless body as it will have no legal power to resolve the Mahanadi issues. Hence, the State Government should place a demand before the Union Government for formation of a River Board and Integrated Rule Curve to resolve the issue,” Mohapatra told reporters.