Bihar and Jharkhand on Monday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on sharing the waters of the Sone River in the presence of Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Amit Shah, resolving a nearly 25-year-old pending water dispute between the two states.
The agreement is expected to ensure water for irrigation and drinking purposes across several districts of Bihar and Jharkhand.
Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren, Bihar Chief Minister Samrat Chaudhary, Union Jal Shakti Minister C.R. Patil, Bihar’s Deputy Chief Minister, the Union Home Secretary, and senior officials from the Centre and both states were present on the occasion.
HM Shah said the agreement had resolved a long-awaited water dispute in eastern India and would provide irrigation water to lakhs of farmers in large rural areas of Bihar and Jharkhand, besides meeting the drinking water needs of the people.
He described the agreement on sharing the Sone River’s waters as an example of the ‘Team Bharat’ vision and cooperative federalism championed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said a press release from the Ministry of Home Affairs.
“While all states possess their own distinct identities, if they move forward as ‘Team Bharat’ within the national context, there is no problem which cannot be resolved,” HM Shah said.
He added that the agreement marked the fourth water-sharing agreement between states this year, which would enhance water availability for irrigation, rural development and drinking purposes.
He said the resolution of the nearly 25-year-old dispute demonstrated that problems could be addressed through dialogue based on the spirit of cooperative federalism.
“Issues concerning vast geographical areas, farmers, rural regions, and drinking water supplies in both states have been permanently resolved today,” he said.
According to HM Shah, the agreement would ensure adequate water for drinking and irrigation across Bihar’s Bhojpur, Buxar, Rohtas, Kaimur, Aurangabad, Arwal, Gaya and Patna districts.
In Jharkhand, the agreement would facilitate the availability of water for irrigation and drinking purposes in Palamu, Garhwa and other regions, he said.
Jharkhand CM Soren and Bihar CM Chaudhary expressed gratitude to Prime Minister Modi and HM Shah for facilitating the resolution of the Sone River water-sharing issue.
The press release stated that, on HM’s initiative, several long-pending inter-state water disputes that remained unresolved for decades are being addressed through the Inter-State Council. So far this year, four historic agreements have been reached.
-with PIB inputs
