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Home / UPSC Editorials / River Interlinking

River Interlinking: Concept, Advantages & Concerns - UPSC Editorials

Last Updated on Jan 13, 2025
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Context: On December 25, 2024, Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone for the Ken-Betwa River Link Project that would end the scarcity of water in Bundelkhand. The ₹45,000 crore project to build a dam in the Panna Tiger Reserve has raised environmental worries about submergence and biodiversity loss.

Analysis based on 

Editorial River interlinking, the fount of environmental disaster published in The Hindu on January 09th, 2025

Topics for UPSC Prelims

River Interlinking, Ken-Betwa River Link Project, National Water Development Agency (NWDA), Panna Tiger Reserve

Topics for UPSC Mains

Environmental and Social Concerns of River interlinking

Historical Background of River Interlinking

Sir Arthur Cotton proposed the idea 130 years ago and M. Visvesvaraya modified it in the 1970s to present the National Water Grid. The National Water Development Agency, NWDA identified 30 linkages for the feasibility study which include 14 Himalayan and 16 Peninsular river links.

Objectives of River Interlinking

The process of river interlinking is carried out with the following objectives:

  • The impact of floods and droughts should be lessened.
  • Water distress in agriculture needs to be addressed.
  • It may also elevate rural incomes through surplus water being shifted from rivers such as the Ganga and Brahmaputra to deficit ones.

Current Status of River Interlinking

The programme will cost approximately ₹5.5 lakh crores, without taking into consideration the social, environmental, or operational costs. The foundation stone was laid down in December 2024.

Read the article on the Ganga River System!

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Advantages and Intentions of River Interlinking

The following are the advantages of river interlinking:

  • Water Distribution: It is supposed to mitigate drought-prone situations in areas like Bundelkhand by distributing water resources.
  • Economic and Agricultural Gains: It promises to improve irrigation, raise rural incomes, and boost agricultural productivity.
  • Flood Relief: It would divert surplus floodwaters to water-scarce areas.

Read the article on the Difference between River and River Basin!

Environmental and Social Concerns of River Interlinking

River interlinking raises the following problems:

Ecological Disruption:

  • The decrease in water flow through deltaic regions will alter silt deposition, groundwater recharge, and biodiversity.
  • The Panna Tiger Reserve is vulnerable to submergence, which threatens wildlife habitat.

Loss of ecosystem services:

  • Free-flowing rivers provide essential services, such as nutrient transport, fertility of floodplains, and salt balance in coastal regions.

International Experience on River Alteration:

  • When the British built the barrage, the Indus Delta became poor.
  • Ecological catastrophes like Aral Sea desiccation and the Kissimmee River channelization in Florida, USA, present long-term ecological damage.

High Cost & Taxes

  • The estimated cost exceeds ₹5.5 lakh crores and so imposes a cost on the pockets of taxpayers who have no social and environmental consequence.

Read the article on the Map of Indian Rivers!

Real Reasons Behind India’s Water Crisis

The following are the causes of the water crisis in India:

  • Corruption, ambiguous laws, and lack of planning exacerbate the problem.
  • Flood irrigation causes loss of water when applied in excess; modern techniques, like drip irrigation, are not extensively applied.
  • Water scarcity problems worsen due to the lack of initiatives for the recycling or usage of wastewater.
  • Excessive use of dams affects the river ecosystem and natural hydrographic systems.

India has to move toward community-managed watershed protection, sound and sustainable regulations regarding water use management, and modern irrigation rather than geoengineering-based solutions, which will cost heavily. Apart from dealing with current problems of water issues, health sustenance for rivers and ecosystem development is inevitable in ensuring welfare of the coming generation.

Read the article on the Water Stress in India!

UPSC Practice Question

"The Ken-Betwa River Link Project reflects India's ambitious plans for river interlinking to address water scarcity but raises significant ecological and social concerns." Critically analyze. (250 words)

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