Mahanadi Tribunal to send report to us within 3 years for resolving water dispute: Govt

New Delhi [India], September 15 : The Mahanadi Tribunal will investigate the river water dispute between Odisha and Chhattisgarh and forward a report to the central government within a period of three years, according to Minister of State for Jal Shakti Rattan Lal Kataria.
In a written reply in Rajya Sabha on Monday, Kataria said, "The tribunal shall investigate the matters referred to it and forward to the Central Government a report setting out the facts as found by it and giving its decision on the matters referred to it within a period of three years."
"Provided that if the decision cannot be given for an unavoidable reason, within a period of three years, the central government may extend the period for a further period not exceeding two years," he wrote.
The minister said the Centre and state governments may again refer the matter to the tribunal for further consideration.
On March 12, 2018, the Centre had constituted 'the Mahanadi Water Disputes Tribunal' for resolving the longstanding dispute between Odisha and Chhattisgarh over the sharing of Mahanadi water.
The tribunal was formed under the Inter-State River Water Disputes Act, 1956 following the Supreme Court directive on January 23, 2018, revealed a notification issued by the Union Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation.