BHUBANESWAR: Union minister for petroleum and natural gas Dharmendra Pradhan today condemned the statement of Chhattisgarh chief minister Raman Singh on Mahanadi river water, but asked the Odisha government to clarify why it has failed to harness the river water, 52 percent of which flows into the Bay of Bengal, during the last 18 years.
The union minister, however, reiterated his stand that all river water disputes between Odisha, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal and Jharkhand should be resolved through discussion as tribunal is a long
drawn affair. Stating that the Centre was never opposed to a tribunal for adjudication of the Mahanadi river water dispute, Pradhan said that the issue was whether it should have been referred to the Single Standing Tribunal, bill for which has been tabled in Lok Sabha or the special tribunal for Mahanadi. After the Supreme Court’s observation, Centre has formed a special tribunal for Mahanadi river water dispute and its functioning has already started, he said.
Prasanta Patnaik