West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee said there should be no discussion on the Teesta and Ganga water sharing agreement with Bangladesh without the state’s participation.
He made these comments in a letter written to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday (June 24).
Mamata said, it is not possible to share Teesta water with Bangladesh. Because people in the northern part of West Bengal need water for irrigation and drinking.
He said that the flow of water in the Teesta has decreased over the last few years and it is believed that if the water is shared with Bangladesh, millions of people in North Bengal will be severely affected due to insufficient irrigation water.
In her letter to Modi, Mamata said that Teesta water is also needed to meet the drinking water needs of the residents of North Bengal. So it is not possible to share Teesta water with Bangladesh.
Mamata wrote the letter on Monday, a day after talks between Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Narendra Modi in New Delhi. In this, he said, without the advice and opinion of the state government, such unilateral discussions and suggestions are neither acceptable nor desirable.
Mamata wrote, ‘I understand that the Government of India is in the process of renewing the India-Bangladesh Farakka Agreement (1996); The term of which is going to end in 2026. As you know, this water sharing agreement between Bangladesh and India has a huge impact on the people of West Bengal.’
He mentioned in the letter that the people of West Bengal will be the most affected by such an agreement.
Pointing to India-Bangladesh enclave exchange, India-Bangladesh railway and bus service, the Chief Minister of West Bengal said that the state of West Bengal has cooperated with Bangladesh in the past on several issues.
But water is very precious and life saving tool. We cannot compromise on such a sensitive issue; Which has a severe and adverse effect on the people, he wrote in the letter.
Referring to the proposal to share water in the northern river Teesta in West Bengal, he said, the Teesta on the Indian side has already suffered a lot due to the construction of several hydropower projects in Sikkim and deforestation in the upstream wetlands and now there is not enough water to share.
In the meeting, Mamata wrote, the Indian government proposed bilateral cooperation between India and Bangladesh to revive the Teesta in Bangladesh. I am surprised that Ministry of Water Power has not taken any concrete steps to restore the river to its original form in India.
Source: NDTV
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