Recently there has been a revival of interest regarding the controversial proposal of inter-linking of rivers (ILR). This is despite the fact that only a short while ago the Planning Commission had raised very serious objections to several aspects of this now-off now-on proposal.
The 12th Plan (2012-2017) document said that the ambitious scheme for interlinking of rivers presents major problems. On the costs side, this document said that the comprehensive proposal to link the Himalayan Rivers with the peninsular rivers for inter-basin transfer of water is estimated to cost around Rs. 560,000 crores. Land submergence and rehabilitation and resettlement packages would be additional to this whopping estimate, and the huge running costs like power will be extra. All this massive money is being demanded for a project of dubious merit, for as the Planning Commission points out, "because of our dependence on the monsoon, the periods when rivers have 'surplus' water are generally synchronous across the sub-continent."
Further, the Planning Commission points out, "given the topography of India and the way links are envisaged, it might totally bypass the core dryland areas of Central and Western India, which are located on elevations of more than 300 metres above mean sea level." This review then goes on to mention the possibility of other adverse impacts, such as coastal and delta erosion, as well as possible disruptive impact on the monsoon.
Apart from the serious reservations raised by the Planning Commission, attention may also be drawn to a statement signed by 65 senior academics, former government officials, scientists, engineers, lawyers, journalists, environmentalists, activists and others. This statement has attracted a lot of attention, not the least because among those various eminent persons who have signed it there are also quite a few who have occupied senior government positions in the past. We can identify, for example, three former Secretaries to the Government of India and one former Member of the Planning Commission. In addition among the signatories we have a former Under Secretary-General of the United Nations. Some of the senior-most people of the most reputed academic institutions are also included in this list. This statement criticises the ILR as a 'reckless and major redesigning of the geography of the country'. "The grand design (of the ILR) consisting of 30 projects involving upwards of 80 dams is bound to have major environmental/ecological consequences, which might even be disastrous in some cases."
Pointing out that the very notions of 'surplus' and 'deficit' are highly problematic, this statement says that there will be hardly any flood-moderation as a result of ILR. "This project holds the potential of generating new conflicts between basins." Finally, this statement recommends that "careful, economical, conflict-free and sustainable intra-basin management should come first, and bringing water from elsewhere should be the last recourse".
Himanshu Thakkar, a member of the Ministry of Water Resources' first expert committee on the ILR, has said, "Based on available information, the ILR will require at least 7.61 lakh hectares land and will displace at least 14.8 lakh people. In addition ILR will need at least 20 lakh hectares of land for the canal network. The ILR will also need at least 1.04 lakh hectares of forest land as per available official information." Bharat Singh, Professor Emeritus, Water Resources Training Centre, Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee, has stated clearly that "any water resources engineer will immediately discard the idea of the ILR as a flood control measure".
Ramaswamy R. Iyer, a former Secretary, Union Ministry of Water Resources, has observed: "Linking a river to another will merely provide additional water to areas already served by rivers. Most of the uplands and dry lands of this country are distant from rivers, and at elevations of 300 m to 1000 m above mean sea level. The ILR will serve very few such areas." The National Commission for Integrated Water Resources Development (NCIWRD) had commented on the Himalayan component of the ILR: "The storages and links involved are of very large sizes and lengths, and the costs of construction and environmental problems would be enormous."
In the context of the peninsular component of the ILR, the NCIWRD report stated: "These links will involve stupendous engineering activity. They'll have large-scale, socio-economic, human and environmental impacts and will involve very high financial outlays." More specifically, the Commission said: "Studies of important east-flowing peninsular river-basins, mainly Mahanadi, Godavari, Krishna, Pennar, Cauvery and Vaigai indicate that there is no imperative need for large-scale transfer of water."
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