Four States Sign Historic Pact to Resolve Decades-Old Narmada Project Payment Dispute
NEW DELHI: Four states sharing the Narmada river — Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Rajasthan and Maharashtra — signed an agreement on Tuesday to settle a long-standing dispute over compensation for land submerged by the Sardar Sarovar Project and related payments to affected people.
The chief ministers of the four states signed the pact in the presence of Union Home Minister Amit Shah, marking a one-time settlement of pending dues among Narmada award beneficiaries.
The agreement addresses cost-sharing arrangements for the construction of the Sardar Sarovar Dam. According to Shah, the pact resolves decades of disagreement and ensures final settlement of financial obligations among the states.
Shah noted that the dam has already brought water and electricity to large parts of Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, and Rajasthan. He said that even in areas of Rajasthan where benefits appear modest, access to Narmada waters has increased land value and improved farmers' livelihoods.
The home minister described the agreement as an example of 'cooperative federalism,' similar to the recent resolution of the Kishau Dam dispute between Haryana and Rajasthan.
