The Hindu : New Delhi News : Paragodu: seven issues framed in suit

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Tuesday, Dec 15, 2009
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Paragodu: seven issues framed in suit

J. Venkatesan

Paragodu dam project has been taken up by Karnataka
Andhra Pradesh has moved court against the project

New Delhi: Seven issues have been framed in the suit filed by the Andhra Pradesh Government in the Supreme Court challenging the Paragodu dam project taken up by Karnataka in the Krishna and Pennar basins.

A three-judge Bench of Chief Justice K.G. Balakrishnan, Justice J.M. Panchal and Justice B.S. Chauhan posted the suit for further hearing in the last week of February 2010.

In its suit filed in 2003 Andhra Pradesh alleged that Karnataka had undertaken the project to deprive it, the lower riparian State, of its due share of Chitravathi waters.

Though the dam had been projected as one that would serve the drinking water needs of two towns and 88 villages in Karnataka, its storage capacity was being built with an eye on irrigation needs, it said.

The seven common issues framed for adjudication are: whether the suit under Article 131 of the Constitution was barred by Section 11 of the Inter-State River Water Disputes Act read with Article 262 (2) of the Constitution; whether the agreements of 1892 is binding on the State of Karnataka; whether the suit based on the pre-Constitution Agreements of 1892, 1933 and 1944 is barred by the proviso to Article 131 of the Constitution; whether Karnataka is barred from raising the issues 1, 2 and 3 since it has derived benefits under the 1892 agreement in the Pennar basin as alleged in the plaint; whether Andhra Pradesh is prejudicially affected by the construction of any of the tanks in north Pennar basin; whether Karnataka has violated the 1892 agreements in constructing new works and whether the construction of new works by Karnataka in the Pennar basin is prejudicially affecting the interests of Andhra Pradesh and its inhabitants, particularly the drought prone areas in Anantapur district of Andhra Pradesh.

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