Odisha: High-Level Panel Formed to Address Mahanadi Water Dispute

Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government has set up a high-level committee to find a resolution to the long-pending Mahanadi water dispute with Chhattisgarh.

The panel has been formed on the direction of Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi and will be headed by Deputy Chief Minister Kanak Vardhan Singh Deo.

The seven-member committee includes Ministers Suresh Pujari, Prithiviraj Harichandan and Sampad Chandra Swain, along with Government Chief Whip Saroj Kumar Pradhan, and MLAs Niranjan Pujari, Jayanarayan Mishra and Sofia Firdous.

The Mahanadi dispute has remained a major point of contention between Odisha and Chhattisgarh for years, prompting multiple rounds of inter-state discussions. The National Green Tribunal has also intervened in the matter and directed both states to work towards an amicable settlement.