National River Linking Projects

The National River Linking Project is an interlinking project for rivers in India to provide water to the water deficit areas. Through these projects, the water from rivers with surplus water will be transferred to rivers that are water deficient. This project is managed by the Ministry of Jal shakti. Recently, the announcement of the implementation of the Ken - Betwa link project was made in the Budget 2022-23 by Finance Minister - Nirmala SItharaman. The estimated cost of this project is ₹44,605 crore and it will provide drinking water to 62 Lakh people.

History of Interlinking of Rivers

The idea of the interlinking of rivers is not new to India. It was in 1919 when Sir Arthur Cotton proposed the idea to deal with the issue of water scarcity. Then in 1960, KL Rao, the then Minister of State for Energy and Irrigation proposed the idea of linking Ganga and Cauvery. To overlook the interlinking projects, National Water Development Agency (NWDA) was set up by Indira Gandhi in 1982. It will soon be replaced by the National Interlinking River Authority.

The mention of this project was again made in 2002 by then President of India Abdul Kalam. In the latter half of the same year, the Supreme Court asked the centre to complete the interlinking by 2016. Even after setting up a task force in 2003, no progress was made. Consequently, the Supreme Court again asked the government in 2012 to start the project.

In 2014, the cabinet approved the Ken - Betwa River Linking Project. After facing opposition from different segments of society, this project is all set to be implemented.

Why interlinking of Rivers?

India is an agrarian country, the majority of its population depends on agriculture. But due to the dependence on monsoons, some regions are prone to floods while others are prone to droughts. Interlinking rivers with one another will help in the equitable distribution of river water throughout India. Additionally, it will help in dealing with the problem of floods and droughts.

National River Linking Project (NRLP)

The National River Linking Project, previously known as the National Perspective Plan was prepared by the then Ministry of Irrigation (now Ministry of Jal Shakti) in 1980, It aims to solve the problem of water scarcity by transferring water from surplus regions to deficient rivers through interlinking of rivers. Under this, a total of 30 interlinks have been identified that will cover 37 rivers. There are two components of this project:

The Himalayan Component of NRLP

The Himalayan Component of NRPL includes14 proposed interlinks:

1. Manas - Sankosh - Tista - Ganga
2. Kosi - Ghagra
3. Gandak - Ganga
4. Ghaghara - Yamuna
5. Sarda - Yamuna
6. The Yamuna - Rajasthan
7. Rajasthan - Sabarmati
8. Chunar - Sone Barrage
9. Sone Dam - Southern Tributaries of Ganga
10. Ganga (Farakka) - Damodar - Subarnarekha
11. Subarnarekha - Mahanadi
12. Kosi - Meichi
13. Farakka - Sunderbans
14. Jogighopa - Tista - Farakka (Alternate)

The Peninsular Component of NRLP

The Peninsular Component of NRPL includes16 proposed interlinks:

1. Mahanadi (Manibhadra) - Godavari (Dowlaiswaram)
2. Godavari (Inchampalli) - Krishna (Pulichintala)
3. Godavari (Inchampalli) - Krishna (Nagarjunasagar)
4. Godavari (Polavaram) - Krishna (Vijayawada)
5. Krishna (Almatti) - Pennar
6. Krishna (Srisailam) - Pennar
7. Krishna (Nagarjunasagar) - Pennar (Somasila)
8. Pennar (Somasila) - Cauvery (Grand Anicut)
9. Cauvery (Kattalai) - Vaigai - Gundar
10. Ken - Betwa
11. Parbati - Kalisindh - Chambal
12. Par - Tapi - Narmada
13. Damanganga- Pinjal
14. Bedti - Varda
15. Netravati - Hemavati
16. Pamba - Achankovil - Vaippar

Benefits of NRLP

This implementation of NRPL will help in dealing with the problem of the water crisis in India. The creation of dams will help in the generation of Hydropower. The surplus water that will be stored will help in maintaining the minimum water flow in rivers. Another benefit of this project is that the farming sector will be less dependent on monsoon to meet their water need for irrigation.

Challenges for NRLP

The challenges for NRLP are:

Implementation of NRLP at the estimated cost of ₹5.6 Lakh crore will require great engineering capacity.

This project will disturb the entire ecosystem. Flora, fauna, wildlife, and national parks in the country will be affected by this project. All this needs to be taken care of while implementing this project.

The building of dams and reservoirs will also disturb the lives of the individuals. This needs to be dealt with in advance.

Inter-state and International disputes will be another challenge in the implementation of NRPL.

Last Updated on: August 24, 2022