With no end in sight to the dispute between the state and Goa over the Kalsa-Banduri project, several leaders of north Karnataka have now decided to meet Goa Chief Minister, Manohar Parrikar, and persuade him to let the project get under way.
The Goa government's objection to the project has forced Karntaka to put it on hold despite spending a huge amount on the preliminary work for it.
President of the Kalsa-Banduri Horata Samiti, Vijay Kulkarni, feels this is the right time to strike as Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar hails from Hubli and the project is intended to providing drinking water to the twin cities of Hubli and Dharwad. "We hope Mr Shettar will give priority to the project and hold talks with his counterpart in Goa to solve the dispute,'' he said.
The samiti plans to appeal to Mr Parrikar to let Karnataka complete the Kalsa-Banduri project by 2013. “We will explain to the Goa CM how important it is to divert water from the Mandovi river to the Malaprabha to overcome the water scarcity in Hubli-Dharwad once and for all. Mr Shettar is aware of the worsening water crisis in the twin cities too and should bring pressure on Mr Parrikar to let Karnataka implement the project,'' Mr Kulkarni said.