Karnataka govt planning construction of dams on Mahadayi river: Goa Congress

Karnataka govt planning construction of dams on Mahadayi river: Goa Cong

The Congress on Tuesday met Goa Governor P S Sreedharan Pillai seeking his intervention in what it claimed were the plans of neighbouring Karnataka to construct dams on the Mahadayi river in violation of a Supreme Court order.

The Mahadayi river, also called Mandovi is the lifeline of Goa.(HT Photo)

The two states are locked in a dispute over sharing of the river's water, considered the lifeline of Goa. Goa has accused Karnataka of carrying out construction to divert the river water without authorisation.

A delegation of Congress leaders demanded that the Goa governor visit the site in Karnataka where the government has planned to construct dams. “We submitted a memorandum stating that people in Goa are afraid, anxious, and concerned about the failure of the Goa government to take proactive steps to protect the Mahadayi river,”

Goa Congress chief Amit Patkar, who led the delegation, told reporters. The Congress claimed that Karnataka is constructing dams to divert water from the Mahadayi river basin while the Goa government remains a "mute spectator" to the violation of the Supreme court order.