Environmentalists rejected the setting up of the eight member Special Task Force to monitor interlinking of major rivers within 15 years to tackle droughts, floods and disputes at an estimated cost of Rs 5,60, 000 crore under the chairman ship of Suresh Parbhu. Government of India, ministry of water resources passed a resolution on 13th December, 2002 to that effect.

“The grand visions of long-distance water transfers from one basin to another is totally uncalled for, when we cannot even persuade neighboring states within a basin to agree upon sharing of waters,” said Ramaswamy R Iyer, former Secretary, Union Water Resources Ministry, Government of India at the Environment and Health Lecture Series organised by Toxics Link on the issue of "interlinking rivers" on 13 January at India International Centre, New Delhi.

“Linking of rivers is a disastrous idea from the environmental point of view. Inter-linking a toxic river with a non-toxic one will have a devastating impact on all our rivers and as consequence on all human beings and wild life. How can one even think of linking for instance, Mercury contaminated Par river of Gujarat or poisonous water of Yamuna river with any other uncontaminated river. The proposal is ecologically destructive,” says Ravi Agarwal, environmentalist, Srishti, an environmental organisation.

The Ministry of Water Resources (then known as Ministry of Irrigation) in the year 1980 formulated a National Perspective Plan for water resources development by transferring water from water surplus basins to water deficit basins/regions by inter-linking of rivers. The National Perspective Plan has two main components i.e. the Himalayan Rivers Development and Peninsular Rivers Development. The National Water Development Agency (NWDA) was set up as a Society under the Societies Registration Act, 1860 in 1982 to carry out the detailed studies and detailed surveys and investigations and to prepare feasibility reports of the links under the National Perspective Plan.

NWDA has, after carrying out detailed studies, identified 30 links for preparation of feasibility reports and has prepared feasibility reports of 6 such links. The various basin States have expressed divergent views about the studies and feasibility reports prepared by NWDA. With a view to bringing about a consensus among the States and provide guidance on norms of appraisal of individual projects and modalities for project funding etc. the Central Government hereby sets up a Task Force.
Besides Prabhu, Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha as Chairman, C.C. Patel as Vice-Chairman and Dr. C.D. Thatte as Member-Secretary of the Task Force. Apart from the above members of the Task Force, part-time members are to also be nominated. These part-time members will include a member from water deficit States, a person from water surplus States, an economist, a sociologist and a legal/world wildlife expert.

The Task Force is looking into aspects such as providing guidance on norms of appraisal of individual projects in respect of economic viability, socio-economic impacts, environmental impacts and preparation of resettlement plans, devising suitable mechanism for bringing about speedy consensus amongst the states and prioritize the different project components for preparation of Detailed Project Reports and implementation.

According to the resolution all the capital and revenue expenditure required to be incurred by the Task Force shall be borne by the Central Government through the grants-in-aid to National Water Development Agency and National Water Development Agency will account for expenditure of the Task Force as a part of its establishment expenditure and would provide such other secretarial/ministerial assistance as may be required. Audit of Controller General of Accounts and Comptroller and Auditor General of India would be incident on such expenditure in the same manner as it would be on National Water Development Agency’s other usual expenditure.

The proposed time table for interlinking of Rivers
(i) Notification of the Task Force By 16.12.2002
(ii) Preparation of Action Plan-I, giving an outline of the time schedules for the completion of the feasibility studies, detailed project reports, estimated cost, implementation schedule, concrete benefits and advantages of the project, etc. 30.04.2003
(iii) Preparation of Action Plan-II, giving alternative options for funding and execution of the project as also the suggested methods for cost recovery. 31.07.2003
(iv) Meeting with the Chief Ministers to deliberate over the project and to elicit their cooperation. May/June, 2003
(v) Completion of Feasibility Studies (already in progress). 31.12.2005
(vi) Completion of Detailed Project Reports. (Preparation of DPRs will start simultaneously since FSs in respect of six river links have already been completed). 31.12.2006
(vii) Implementation of the Project (10 years). 31.12.2016

The idea of linking rivers has already been carefully discussed by a High level National Commission on Integrated Water Resources Development Plan which found it no-promising. We need to take relook at the report before going ahead with this insane idea, adds Iyer. Calling linking of rivers totally impractical, Dr Sudhirendra Sharma, water and energy expert, Ecological Foundation, Delhi says, “only nature should decide what course a river should take. Disputes such as Cauvery will increase in a huge way and will lead to unimagined level of displacement and it is not at all in national interest”.