**Executive Summary:**
The Ministry of Jal Shakti addresses a parliamentary question regarding the Interlinking of Rivers (ILR) project. The government is actively pursuing the National Perspective Plan (NPP) to transfer water from surplus to deficit basins. The Ken-Betwa Link Project (KBLP) is the first project under implementation, with work awarded for the Daudhan dam. The initiative aims to mitigate flood and drought effects, with ongoing efforts to manage floods and provide financial assistance to states like Bihar.
**Key Points / Main Content:**
* **National Perspective Plan (NPP) for Interlinking of Rivers (ILR):**
* Formulated to transfer water from surplus basins to deficit areas.
* National Water Development Agency (NWDA) is entrusted with the work.
* 30 ILR projects identified: 14 Himalayan Component and 16 Peninsular Component.
* Completed reports: 11 DPRs, 26 FRs, and 30 PFRs.
* **Ken-Betwa Link Project (KBLP):**
* First link of NPP under implementation, approved in December 2021.
* Estimated cost: Rs. 44,605 crore (2020-21 price level), with central support of Rs. 39,317 crore.
* Ken Betwa Link Project Authority (KBLPA) established as a Special Purpose Vehicle.
* Work awarded for the main component (Daudhan dam), and a Project Management Consultant hired.
* **Flood and Drought Mitigation:**
* Bihar State is prone to floods in Northern Bihar and drought in Southern Bihar.
* ILR projects are designed to transfer water from surplus to deficit basins, mitigating flood and drought effects.
* Floodwater will be diverted to water-deficit regions, recharging groundwater, tanks, and canals.
* **Flood Management Efforts:**
* Flood management and anti-erosion schemes are planned and executed by State Governments.
* The Union Government provides technical guidance and financial assistance.
* Flood Management Programme (FMP) implemented during XI and XII Five Year Plans.
* Continued as part of the Flood Management and Border Areas Programme (FMBAP) until 2026.
* 48 flood management projects included under FMP component of FMBAP for implementation in Bihar.
* Central assistance of 924.40 crore released to the Government of Bihar.
* States, including Bihar, advised to adopt and enforce flood plain zoning.
* **Peninsular Component Projects Status:**
* Mahanadi-Godavari links: FR completed.
* Godavari-Krishna links: FR/DPR completed.
* Krishna-Pennar links: FR/DPR completed.
* Pennar-Cauvery links: FR/DPR completed.
* Cauvery-Vaigai-Gundar link: DPR completed.
* Parbati-Kalisindh-Chambal link: FR/Draft PFR completed.
* Damanganga-Pinjal link: DPR completed (water supply to Mumbai).
* Par-Tapi-Narmada link: DPR completed.
* Bedti-Varda link: DPR completed.
* Netravati-Hemavati link: PFR completed.
* **Himalayan Component Projects Status:**
* Kosi-Mechi link: PFR completed.
* Kosi-Ghaghra link: FR completed.
* Gandak-Ganga link: FR completed.
* Ghaghra-Yamuna link: Draft FR completed.
* Sarda-Yamuna link: FR completed.
* Yamuna-Rajasthan link: FR completed.
* Rajasthan-Sabarmati link: FR completed.
* Chunar-Sone Barrage link: Draft FR completed.
* Sone Dam-Southern Tributaries of Ganga link: Draft FR completed.
* Manas-Sankosh-Tista-Ganga (MSTG) link: FR completed.
* Jogighopa-Tista-Farakka link: PFR completed (alternative to MSTG).
* Farakka-Sundarbans link: FR completed.
* Ganga-Farakka-Damodar-Subarnarekha link: FR completed.
* Subarnarekha-Mahanadi link: FR completed.
**Impact Analysis:**
* **Government of India (Ministry of Jal Shakti):**
* *Impact:* Responsible for the overall planning, funding, and execution of the ILR project.
* *Action Required:* Continue to oversee and support the NWDA and KBLPA, provide technical guidance and financial assistance to states, and promote flood plain zoning.
* **State Governments (e.g., Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, etc.):**
* *Impact:* Directly involved in the implementation of ILR projects, flood management, and drought mitigation efforts within their respective states.
* *Action Required:* Collaborate with the Union Government and NWDA, implement flood management and anti-erosion schemes, adopt flood plain zoning, and utilize central assistance effectively.
* **National Water Development Agency (NWDA):**
* *Impact:* Entrusted with the execution of the Interlinking of Rivers project.
* *Action Required:* Continue to prepare and update project reports, coordinate with state governments, and ensure the timely and effective implementation of ILR projects.
* **Ken Betwa Link Project Authority (KBLPA):**
* *Impact:* Responsible for the implementation of the Ken-Betwa Link Project.
* *Action Required:* Oversee the construction of the Daudhan dam, manage project finances, and coordinate with stakeholders to ensure the project's successful completion.
* **Citizens of Flood and Drought-Prone Regions (e.g., North and South Bihar):**
* *Impact:* Directly affected by the success or failure of the ILR project in mitigating floods and droughts.
* *Action Required:* Stay informed about project developments, participate in local consultations, and cooperate with government initiatives to manage flood and drought risks.
Key Entities Referenced
National Perspective Plan: A plan formulated by the Government of India for Inter-Linking of Rivers (ILR) to transfer water from surplus basins to deficit areas.
Interlinking of Rivers: A project under the National Perspective Plan managed by the National Water Development Agency, aiming to transfer water from surplus basins to deficit areas in the country.
National Water Development Agency: The agency entrusted with the work of Interlinking of Rivers under the National Perspective Plan.
Ken-Betwa Link project: The first link of the National Perspective Plan under implementation, aimed at linking the Ken and Betwa rivers.
Ken Betwa Link Project Authority: A Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) established for the implementation of the Ken-Betwa Link project.
Government of Bihar: The state government providing information on flood and drought conditions in Bihar, and recipient of central assistance for flood management projects.
Flood Management Programme: A Union Government initiative implemented during the XI and XII Five Year Plans, offering central assistance to States for works related to flood control.
Flood Management and Border Areas Programme: An initiative continued from the Flood Management Programme (FMP), extended up to 2026, providing central assistance to states for flood management.
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF JAL SHAKTI
DEPARTMENT OF WATER RESOURCES, RIVER DEVELOPMENT & GANGA REJUVENATION
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 873
ANSWERED ON 24.07.2025
INTER-LINKING OF RIVERS
†873. SHRI KAUSHALENDRA KUMAR
Will the Minister of JAL SHAKTI be pleased to state:
(a) the present status of the Government’s ambitious project to inter-link rivers in the country;
(b) whether it is a fact that on the one hand the north Bihar experiences devastating floods while on the other
hand the south Bihar has to endure drought every year and if so, the details
thereof; and
(c) the concrete efforts made/being made by the Government in this direction to check the devastation
caused by floods every year due to delay in the inter-linking of rivers?
ANSWER
THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR JAL SHAKTI
(SHRI RAJ BHUSHAN CHOUDHARY)
(a) The Government of India has formulated a National Perspective Plan (NPP) for Inter-Linking of Rivers
(ILR) for transferring water from surplus basins to deficit basins/areas of the country . National Water
Development Agency (NWDA) has been entrusted with the work of Interlinking of Rivers under the NPP.
30 ILR projects have been identified under the NPP with two components, viz; Himalayan Component (14
projects) and Peninsular Component (16 projects). Detailed Projects Reports (DPRs) of 11 link projects,
Feasibility Reports (FRs) of 26 link projects and Pre-Feasibility Reports (PFRs) of 30 link projects have
been completed.
Details of the status of ILR projects under the NPP are given at Annexure.
Ken-Betwa Link project (KBLP): KBLP is the first link of NPP that is under implementation. The
Govt. of India has approved the implementation of KBLP in December, 2021 with an estimated cost of Rs.
44,605 crore (year 2020-21 price level) with central support of Rs. 39,317 crore through a Special Purpose
Vehicle viz. Ken Betwa Link Project Authority (KBLPA). Work for the main component of the project i.e.
Daudhan dam has been awarded. A Project Management Consultant has been hired for assisting KBLPA for
implementation of project.
(b) & (c) As per information provided by the Government of Bihar, Bihar State is prone to floods.
Predominantly, Northern Bihar gets affected by floods every year due to heavy rainfall in the upper
catchment areas, which mainly lie in Nepal. Whereas Southern Bihar faces problem of flash flood as well as
drought.
1The link projects under the NPP are judiciously planned and designed to, wherever possible, transfer
water from surplus basins to the deficit/water short basins and thus, mitigating the effects of floods and
droughts to some extent. The flood water from flood prone/water surplus river basins would be diverted to
water deficit regions and would also recharge ground water table, tanks and canals in the command areas.
Further, the Flood management and anti-erosion schemes are planned and executed by the respective State
Governments based on their priorities. To support these efforts, the Union Government provides both
technical guidance and promotional financial assistance for managing floods in critical areas.
In order to strengthen structural flood management measures, the Union Government implemented
the Flood Management Programme (FMP) during the XI and XII Five Year Plans, offering central
assistance to States for works related to flood control, anti-erosion, drainage improvement, and protection
against sea erosion. This initiative was subsequently continued as a component of the Flood Management
and Border Areas Programme (FMBAP) during the period 2017–18 to 2020–21, and was further extended
up to 2026 with a limited financial outlay.
Under the FMP component of FMBAP, a total of 48 flood management projects—estimated at
₹1866.50 crore—have been included for implementation, out of which central assistance amounting to
₹924.40 crore has been released to the Government of Bihar.
Further, the Ministry of Jal Shakti has advised all the States including Bihar to adopt ans enforce
flood plain zoning as a non structural measure to mitigate damage caused by floods.
***
2ANNEXURE
ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (a) OF UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 873
ANSWERED IN LOK SABHA ON 24.07.2025 REGARDING “INTER-LINKING OF RIVERS”.
Details and current status of ILR projects under the NPP
Peninsular Components
Sl.No Name Statesbenefited Status
1 a. Mahanadi (Manibhadra) - Godavari Andhra Pradesh (AP) FR completed
(Dowlaiswaram) link and Odisha
b. Alternate Mahanadi (Barmul) – AP and Odisha FR completed
Rushikulya – Godavari (Dowlaiswaram) link
2 Godavari (Polavaram) - AP, Karnataka, Maharashtra FR completed
Krishna (Vijayawada) link @ and Telangana
3 a. Godavari (Inchampalli) – Krishna Telangana FR completed
(Nagarjunasagar) link
b. Alternate Godavari (Inchampalli) - Telangana DPR completed
Krishna (Nagarjunasagar) link *
4 Godavari (Inchampalli/SSMPP) Telangana and AP DPR completed
- Krishna (Pulichintala) link
5 a. Krishna (Nagarjunasagar) - Pennar AP FR completed
(Somasila ) link
b. Alternate Krishna (Nagarjunasagar) - AP DPR completed
Pennar (Somasila ) link *
6 Krishna (Srisailam) – Pennar link AP Draft DPR
completed
7 Krishna (Almatti) – Pennar link AP and Karnataka Draft DPR completed
8 a. Pennar (Somasila) - Cauvery (Grand Anicut) AP, Tamil Nadu and FR completed
link Puducherry
b. Alternate Pennar (Somasila) – Cauvery (Grand AP, Tamil Nadu and DPR completed
Anicut) link * Puducherry
9 Cauvery (Kattalai) - Vaigai -Gundar link Tamil Nadu DPR completed
10 a. Parbati –Kalisindh - Chambal link Madhya Pradesh (MP) FR completed
and Rajasthan
b. Modified Parbati – Kalisindh-Chambal link MP and Rajasthan Draft PFR completed
(duly integrated with ERCP)
11 Damanganga-Pinjal link Maharashtra (only water DPR completed
supply to Mumbai)
12 Par-Tapi-Narmada link Gujarat and Maharashtra DPR completed
13 Ken-Betwa link Uttar Pradesh (UP) DPR completed
and MP & project is
under
implementation
14 Pamba - Achankovil - Vaippar link Tamil Nadu and FR completed
Kerala
15 Bedti - Varda link @@ Karnataka DPR completed
16 Netravati – Hemavati link** Karnataka PFR completed
3* Due to pending consensus on Manibhadra and Inchampalli dams, Alternate study to divert unutilized
waters of Godavari River was carried out and DPR of Godavari (Inchampalli/ Janampet) – Krishna
(Nagarjunasagar) - Pennar (Somasila) – Cauvery (Grand Anicut) link projects were completed. Godavari-
Cauvery (Grand Anicut) link project has been prepared comprising of Godavari (Inchampalli / Janampet) -
Krishna (Nagarjunasagar), Krishna (Nagarjunasagar) - Pennar (Somasila) and Pennar (Somasila) Cauvery
(Grand Anicut) link projects.
** Further studies are not taken up since after implementation of Yettinahole project by Government of
Karnataka, no surplus water is available in Netravati basin for diversion through this link.
@ Godavari (Polavaram) – Krishna (Vijayawada) link – The project has been taken up by Government of
Andhra Pradesh.
@@Bedti – Varda link – DPR was prepared directly after preparation of its PFR, no FR was prepared.
Himalayan Component
Sl.No Nameofthelink States / Countries Status
benefited
1. Kosi-Mechi link Bihar and Nepal PFR completed
2. Kosi-Ghaghra link Bihar, UP and Nepal FR completed
3. Gandak - Ganga link UP and Nepal FR completed
4. Ghaghra - Yamuna link UP and Nepal Draft FR
completed
5. Sarda - Yamuna link UP and Uttarakhand FR completed
6. Yamuna-Rajasthan link Haryana and Rajasthan FR completed
7. Rajasthan-Sabarmati link Rajasthan and Gujarat FR completed
8. Chunar-Sone Barrage link Bihar and UP Draft FR
completed
9. Sone Dam - Southern Bihar and Jharkhand Draft FR
Tributaries of Ganga link completed
10. Manas-Sankosh-Tista-Ganga Assam, West Bengal FR completed
(M-S-T-G) link (WB) and Bihar
11. Jogighopa-Tista-Farakka link Assam, WB and Bihar PFR completed
(Alternative to M-S-T-G)
12. Farakka-Sundarbans link WB FR completed
13. Ganga(Farakka) - Damodar- WB, Odisha and FR completed
Subarnarekha link Jharkhand
14. Subarnarekha-Mahanadi link WB and Odisha FR completed
*****
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