Inter-State Water Disputes

Inter-State Water Disputes occur when multiple state governments encounter conflicts or disagreements concerning the utilization and distribution of shared water bodies or resources. In this article, you will learn definition, acts, list of Inter-State water disputes in India, causes of Inter-State Water Disputes in India, issues with the mechanism, providing key insights for GS Paper-II Indian polity section of UPSC IAS Exam.

Table of Content

• What are Inter-State Water Disputes?     
• Constitutional provisions for Inter-State Water Disputes
• The River Boards Act
• The Inter-State Water Disputes Act
• Significance of such mechanisms
• List of Inter-State Water Disputes in India
• Issue with the mechanism
• Conclusion          
• Frequently Asked Questions        
• Reference           

What are Inter-State Water Disputes?

• Inter-State Water Disputes occur when multiple state governments encounter conflicts or disagreements concerning the utilization and distribution of shared water bodies or resources.

Constitutional provisions for Inter-State Water Disputes:

• Entry 17 of the State List- Schedule VII empowers the state government to take decision regarding water-related matters such as water supply, irrigation, canals, drainage, embankments, water storage, and water power.
• Entry 56 of the Union List- Schedule VII empowers the Union Government to regulate and develop inter-state rivers and river valleys as deemed necessary by Parliament in the public interest.
• According to Article 262 of the Constitution, interstate water disputes in India are resolved through specific provisions including.
  • The Parliament has the power to pass laws for the settlement of disputes related to the use, distribution, and control of inter-state rivers and river valleys.
  • The Parliament has the power to exclude the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court and other courts from such disputes.
• The Indian Parliament has enacted two laws- the River Boards Act (1956) and the Inter-State Water Disputes Act (1956).

The River Boards Act:

• It provides provision for establishment of river boards, which regulates and develops inter-state rivers and river valleys.
  • The river boards are established by Central government upon the request of the state governments.

The Inter-State Water Disputes Act:

• It empowers the Central government to establish ad hoc tribunals for the resolution of disputes between 2 or more states over inter-state rivers or river valleys.
• The decisions made by these tribunals are final and binding on the parties involved.
• There is no jurisdiction granted to the Supreme Court or any other court if such water dispute has already been referred to the tribunal constituted.

Significance of such mechanisms:

• The establishment of these extra judicial mechanisms will help address inter-state water disputes more effectively.
• Even though the Supreme Court has jurisdiction over disputes involving legal rights, but the complexities of the proper utilization of water resources required a different approach.
• Experience from other countries suggests that rules of law governing private proprietary interests related to water will not provide a satisfactory framework for resolving disputes between states.
• As of 2019, the Central government has established 9 inter-state water dispute tribunals.
• Inter-State River Water Disputes (Amendment) Bill, 2019 was earlier tabled on parliament.

List of Inter-State Water Disputes in India:

Name	Set-up in	States Involved	Active/Inactive
Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal-I	1969	Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh	Active
Godavari Water Disputes Tribunal	1969	Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Odisha	Inactive
Narmada Water Disputes Tribunal	1969	Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra	Inactive
Ravi and Beas Water Disputes Tribunal	1986	Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan	Active
Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal	1990	Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry	Inactive
Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal-II	2004	Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh	Inactive
Vansadhara Water Disputes Tribunal	2010	Odisha and Andhra Pradesh	Active
Mahadayi Water Disputes Tribunal	2010	Goa, Karnataka and Maharashtra	Active
Mahanadi Water Disputes Tribunal	2018	Odisha and Chhattisgarh	Active

Issue with the mechanism:

• Protracted proceedings and extreme delays in dispute resolution:
  • Example: Godavari and Krishna disputes started around 1956 but the matter was referred to a tribunal in 1969.
• Opacity in the institutional framework and guidelines that define these proceedings.
• The absence of authoritative water data that is acceptable to all parties makes it difficult to set up a baseline for adjudication. 
• State governments have many times rejected tribunal awards.
  • Example: the Punjab government rejected the judgement of the Ravi-Beas tribunal.

Conclusion

Inter-state water disputes pose challenges in the equitable allocation and management of water resources among different states. These disputes arise due to increasing demands, scarcity etc. Inter-state water tribunals having more specialised and appropriate technical knowledge is more effective in resolving such disputes.

Ref: Source-1

Other Articles in Polity & Governance
Inter-State Council	Centre State Legislative Relations
Seventh Schedule of Indian Constitution	Directive Principles of State Policy
Uniform Civil Code (UCC)	National Anti-profiteering Authority (NAA)

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