Patna (ABN) The politics of Bihar has heated up once again over the Farka Water Agreement. The Janata Dal United (JDU) has stepped up its opposition to the renewal of the 1996 Ganga water sharing agreement in its current form. The party says that no agreement should be taken forward ignoring Bihar's water interests. JDU working president and Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Jha has taken a strong stand on the issue and said that there will be no compromise with the water of Bihar, whether in power or not. The 30-year agreement, signed on December 12, 1996, expires in December this year, after which a decision on its renewal or future formula has to be made. This is the reason why the political activities regarding this agreement have intensified in Bihar.
Sanjay Jha says that Bihar's current and future water needs should be given top priority while taking any future decision on the Farka Agreement. The JDU alleges that as a result of the current arrangement, Bihar does not get the required amount of Ganga water during the dry season and its environmental, agricultural and water interests are affected. The JDU has launched a campaign called 'Nitish Sanwad', under which people will go to 12 districts of Bihar to discuss the Farka Agreement and water rights of the state.
On the issue of renewal of Farka agreement, Sanjay Jha has also raised the issue of Bihar's interests in the Parliament. The central government has since assured Bihar that the state's water needs will be taken into account in any future decision on the renewal of the agreement. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has assured Sanjay Jha that Bihar's interests will not be neglected while deciding on the future of the Ganga water sharing agreement with Bangladesh. The water requirements of the state especially for drinking and industrial use will also be taken into consideration.
The issue of Farka is gaining momentum at a time when political debate is also going on regarding water level and floods in various rivers including the Ganga in Bihar. State government leaders are also stressing the need for siltation, reduced water carrying capacity of rivers and long-term flood solutions.
Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Kumar Choudhary also said to give priority to the needs and interests of Bihar while renewing the Farka Agreement. The JDU is of the view that the water sector must be comprehensively considered considering the population, agriculture, industry and future needs of Bihar. The party says that the water policy should be decided not only by looking at the current situation but by keeping the needs of the coming decades in front.
Sanjay Jha's recent statement has given the issue more political significance. He says that government and power come and go, but the interests of Bihar water and the people remain constant. That's why JDU is not ready to back down from its position on this issue. After this tough stance of the party, the issue of renewal of Farka Water Agreement is likely to become an important topic of Bihar politics in the coming days. On one hand, the central government has assured to take into account the interests of Bihar, on the other hand, the JDU is gearing up to create more pressure on the current form of the agreement and its impact on Bihar. Now it is to be seen what formula emerges on the issue between the Centre, Bihar and other concerned parties before the agreement expires in December and to what extent JDU's campaign on Bihar water rights creates political pressure.