While closing its 10-year-long monitoring of the ambitious `5 lakh crore river interlinking project conceived by Atal Behari Vajpayee’s NDA government and deemed his dream project, the Supreme Court on Monday ordered the setting up of a multi-member committee to oversee its execution, particularly for river links mentioned in several feasibility reports of the task force.
The committee will be headed by the water resources minister and comprise the ministry secretary, the secretary, environment and forest ministry, the Central Water Commission chief, the water development authority secretary, the water and irrigation minister from each concurring state for a particular project, with their principal secretary, and the chief secretary (or his nominee) of the states involved.
The court, which discontinued monitoring as it involved questions on “federalism” better left to be decided by the Union and states, said the panel’s other members would be from among social activists nominated by the water resources and environment and forest ministries.
Senior advocate Ranjit Kumar, assisting the court in the case since 2002, when it took suo motu notice of a PIL, will also be in the panel as he is well versed with the issue.
A three-member bench comprising Chief Justice S.H. Kapadia and Justices A.K. Patnaik and Swatanter Kumar ordered: “The committee shall meet at least once in two months, and shall maintain records of its discussions and minutes. It will be entitled to constitute subcommittees as it may deem necessary ... on such terms and conditions as it may deem proper.”
The panel was directed to submit bi-annual reports directly to the Cabinet Secretariat, to be placed before the Cabinet for prompt decisions. “The Cabinet shall take all final and appropriate decisions... as expeditiously as possible and preferably within 30 days from the date the matter is first placed before its consideration,” the court said. All reports submitted to the court so far will also be placed before the committee after it is in place.