Activists of Odisha’s Samaj Andolan on Monday staged a dharna at Jantar Mantar here opposing construction of barrages upstream of river Mahanadi by the Chhattisgarh Government.
The organisation decried politics over the Mahanadi issue and sought the Central Government’s intervention to stop construction of dams and barrages by Chhattisgarh which affect the Mahanadi’s water flow.
“Today we discussed the Mahanadi water dispute with Union Water Resources Minister Uma Bharti. She has assured us that the construction of barrage on Mahanadi won’t create any such problem. But still, we are on dharna at Jantar Mantar. We would like to caution both the Central and the Chhattisgarh Governments that we will intensify our agitation in the future if any such problem arises. The barrages constructed by the Chhattisgarh Government on the Mahanadi’s upstream are certainly going to pose problems for Odisha in the future,” said Samaj Andolan convener Prativa Das.