K’taka mulls pact with Maharashtra to lift Tillari water

Keri: Four decades ago, Goa and Maharashtra completed work on the Tillari irrigation project under a pact to share the water for drinking and irrigation. Now, Karnataka is preparing to work out a similar understanding with Maharashtra for sharing water of some tributaries flowing in the Tillari region. That prospect has raised concerns in Goa. It is feared that the two states’ agreement may affect the quantum of water available to Goa through the Tillari project.

Goa chief minister Pramod Sawant has already tried to clarify Goa’s stand, stating that 80% of the water from the Tillari project is reserved for Goa and 20% for parts of Maharashtra, as agreed by the two states. “We will discuss this matter with Maharashtra,” the CM said.

Maharashtra and Karnataka have recently joined hands to divert the waters of various tributaries near Chandgad into the Tillari reservoir and from there into the Markandeya basin of Karnataka.

Chandgad MLA Rajesh Patil and Belagavi MP Jagdish Shettar recently held a meeting at the govt inspection bungalow in Belagavi. They discussed the proposal to construct three medium-sized reservoirs inside the forested region surrounding the Dhamne reservoir of Tillari. Accordingly, 6TMC (thousand million cubic feet) of water from Bhanduri, Devalnala, and Palepurmar nullahs, rising in the Western Ghats of the Maharashtra-Karnataka region, would be diverted to the Tillari reservoir and villages in the bordering regions of Maharashtra and Karnataka will get 3TMC of water each to fulfil their drinking and irrigation needs.

Environmentalists from Goa and Maharashtra have expressed apprehension about the damming and diversion schemes of Karnataka and Maharashtra. These projects have been proposed inside the ecologically fragile region that forms part of the tiger corridor between Sahyadri and Kali tiger reserves.Goa and Maharashtra completed the work on the 21.9TMC capacity Tillari irrigation project four decades ago.

The project has been providing 16TMC of water Goa and 5.8TMC to Maharashtra.

Recently, Goa requested Maharashtra to increase the height of the Tillari dam, after a comprehensive study was completed.