Bihar charges UP of not releasing water in Sone canal

Patna, Jan 25 (PTI) Charging Uttar Pradesh of notreleasing water in the Sone canal to the detriment of rabicrop in Bihar, the state government today said that it willtake up the matter with Centre for its intervention.

The Bihar government will raise the issue of increasingthe state''s quota from Rihand reservoir in UP and Bansagarreservoir in Madhya Pradesh by amending the 1973 Bansagarwater sharing agreement among the three states, the stateWater Resources minister Vijay Chaudhary told reporters here.

The joint operation group comprising the Centralminister and the state ministers representing Water Resourcesdepartments will be urged to resolve the matter for increasein the irrigation water for Bihar, he said.

Chaudhary said that Bihar has no grievance with MadhyaPradesh with regard to release of its quota of water fromBansagar reservoir, but Uttar Pradesh government was adamantabout not releasing water to its neighbour this year citingits domestic demand.

The minister said that besides putting pressure onUttar Pradesh for release of water, the water resourcesministry was also mulling measures to manage its waterresources for maximum use towards irrigation.