DPR for Bedti-Hirevaddatti link project to follow environmental requirements: Union Minister

File photo of Bedti River in Uttara Kannada District | Photo credit: File Photo

Union Minister for Jal Shakti CR Patil has written to Uttara Kannada Member of Parliament Vishveshwara Hegde Kageri assuring him that the Detailed Project Report (DPR) for the proposed Bedti-Hirevaddatti (modified Bedti-Varada) link project will be prepared in accordance with statutory, environmental, forest, wildlife and legal requirements.

Responding to Mr. Kageri’s letter to the Union Minister seeking his intervention to stop the preparation of the DPR of the proposed project and put all other activities on hold, Mr. Patil said that planning, development and management of water resources projects are done by respective state governments based on their administrative priorities and resource considerations.

“The role of the Union Government is to extend technical guidance and support wherever required, in accordance with established procedures and after receiving suggestions from the concerned State Government,” Mr. Patil’s letter said.

Regarding this proposed interconnection project, he said that the National Water Development Agency (NWDA) has taken over the preparation of the DPR on the request of the Water Resources Department, Government of Karnataka and an MoU was signed on 23 December 2025 for this purpose.

“It was further clarified that the preparation of the DPR by the NWDA is an investigative and planning exercise and does not constitute the physical implementation or final execution of the project,” he said.

He added that the NWDA further stated that all relevant technical, environmental and socio-economic aspects – including the river’s downstream ecology, environmental flows, agriculture, fisheries, groundwater recharge and the demands of communities dependent on the Bedti basin – will be properly explored during the preparation of the DPR.

“Identification of command area and beneficiaries and assessment of actual water requirements for irrigation, drinking and industrial purposes, especially in drought-prone Gadag and Haveri areas, will also be done in consultation with the Karnataka government,” he said.

He further assured that the project will proceed in compliance with all applicable statutory, environmental, forest, wildlife and legal requirements, while due observance of the prescribed provisions will be ensured at the relevant stages.

Published – 26 Oct 2026 21:06 IST