Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Monday said the state government would move the court to resolve the Mahanadi water sharing issue as the Centre did not show any sincerity to solve the dispute.
"It seems the central government is not sincere to resolve the Mahanadi water dispute. Even though we had urged the Centre to resolve the issue, it extended silent support to the Chhattisgarh government due to its political affiliation," said the Chief Minister while attending a programme of the party here.
Patnaik, who is also the President of the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD), said he had written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking his intervention on the issue but the state government is yet to receive a reply.
Maintaining that Mahanadi is the lifeline of the Odisha people, he said they have decided to move the court to protect the interests of the people in the state.
The Chief Minister said the then Congress government at the Centre had granted maximum fund to the Polavaram project and helped the Chhattisgarh government for the construction of projects on the Mahanadi river.
Now, the Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party are shedding crocodile tears over the Mahanadi and Polavaram issues, he added.
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He said the central government has turned a deaf ear to the grievances of the people affected by the Polavaram project.
In order to sensitise the people in the state, the ruling BJD has decided to launch a signature campaign across the state on November 11. It also decided to hold a huge human chain from Hirakud to Paradip, stretching over 400 km.
--IANS
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