Congress-ruled Rajasthan, miffed with the Centre’s recent missive to halt work on the proposed Eastern Rajasthan Canal Project (ERCP) until issues with BJP-ruled Madhya Pradesh are resolved, has not only rejected the neighbouring State’s objections but also hit out at New Delhi over not adhering to the spirit of federalism.
An all-party meeting on ERCP, convened here on Sunday, reiterated the project’s significance for the State and offered to send a team of experts to the Centre for holding talks on its technical aspects. Rajasthan has maintained that it was utilising its share of water within its own borders and the “lack of consent” by other States was irrelevant.
Though the Ashok Gehlot government has been demanding national project status for quite some time for the ambitious project that is set to benefit 13 districts with over 3.5 crore population through the interlinking of the Parvati, Kali Sindh and Chambal rivers, for quite some time, the Union Jal Shakti Ministry Secretary recently wrote to the State’s Chief Secretary directing a pause on work to take Madhya Pradesh’s concerns on board.
