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India's river-link plan also worries Nepal
Reaz Ahmad, back from Kathmandu
The Daily Star
Thu. October 23, 2003.

Despite being an upper riparian country in South Asia, Nepal is no less worried than its downstream co-riparian Bangladesh about the planned multibillion-dollar river-link project (RLP) of the common neighbour India.

Apprehension already runs high in Bangladesh over the probable fallout of the RLP in terms of less availability of water from some of the transnational rivers like the Ganges and Brahmaputra.

Nepal being strategically located, with India as its lower riparian neighbour, is too worried about submersion of vast areas within its territory along the Indo-Nepal borders in case big dams and reservoirs are built across the border as envisaged by the RLP.

The RLP mentions all major Nepal-India common rivers on its list of linkages. There already exist bilateral agreements between Nepal and India on the rivers Kosi, Gandak and Mahakali, which are going to be linked to other rivers in the Indian territory.

"These agreements, although not equal in benefit-sharing and many other aspects, at least guarantee upper riparian Nepal its right either in full or in part over the water flowing to India through its territory," said Gopal Siwakoti Chintan, coordinator of Water and Energy Users' Federation, Nepal (WAFED), a people's rights group.

Chintan told The Daily Star India is legally obligated to consult Nepal and reassess the water-sharing treaties on common rivers if it has to divert flows of international rivers through any river linkage even within India.

The immediate past water resources minister of Nepal, Dipak Gyawali, said submersion of lands inside Nepal and displacement of people due to the RLP would also harm livelihood and ecology in India itself.

Two renowned Nepalese water experts -- Dr Ananda Bahadur Thapa and Som Nath Poudel -- presented a paper at 'Nepal-India Water Resources Cooperation' meeting in Kathmandu on October 17.

The paper said "India has already built in its territory diversion structures across the Mahakali, Karnali, Babai, West Rapti and even Banganga rivers to irrigate lands. All these diversion structures are linked by a long canal that extends from the Lower Sarada Barrage built across the Mahakali river to Banganga river barrage."

It pointed out, "The landmark Mahakali Treaty is viewed by many intellectuals and politicians in Nepal as ineffective, thereby raising some sort of unwanted tensions among the riparian nations."

The two experts brought this to the notice of what has been described as a 'Track II' meeting supported by the BP Koirala Foundation.

Seven years after signing the 75-year Mahakali River Water Sharing Treaty, Nepal and India are yet to come up with a 'Detailed Project Report (DPR)', as envisaged in the treaty to derive maximum benefits from the common river.

"While finalising the DPR, riparian countries have to agree on the fully integrated management of the water resources, where interests of different sectors as well as ecosystems are taken care of and the water basin principles applied," said Thapa and Poudel in their paper.

"At present, lack of open dialogue and absence of coordinated joint efforts are hindering further development. DPR was supposed to be completed within six months of the agreement. More than six years of fruitless endeavour has frustrated us," the paper added.

BG Verghese, senior most member of the Indian government-constituted RLP Taskforce, was also a participant at the two-day meeting.

Speaking on the sidelines of the meeting, Verghese told The Daily Star, "Optimised regional water management, holistically considered, could guarantee win-win outcomes and offer opportunity to revisit older plans and concepts within a new framework of regional cooperation."

"India should therefore take the earliest opportunity to interact with all its partners in the Ganga-Brahmaputra-Meghna region. It must make known what it is about and hear from Nepal, Bhutan and Bangladesh about their longer term perspectives."

Verghese, also a senior fellow of the Centre for Policy Research (CPR), a Delhi-based think-tank,

said, "Many commonalties and convergence of interests are likely to emerge while differences in perception, priorities and methodology will have to be harmonised. The future need not be a prisoner of past."

Source: The Daily Star.

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