India's Janata Dal(U) launches mass-contact programme against Ganges water-sharing treaty
The programme was scheduled to begin in Buxar and traverse 12 districts along the Ganges before culminating in Katihar in India
Bihar's ruling Janata Dal (United) announced plans yesterday (4 September) to undertake a mass-contact programme today (5 September) to scale up its resistance to the Ganges water-sharing treaty with Bangladesh, demanding that the concerns of the Indian state be taken into account if the agreement is renewed.
JD(U) State President Umesh Kushwaha, an ally of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), told reporters in Patna that the party's Working President Sanjay Kumar Jha and other leaders would undertake a "Nitish Samvad Yatra" covering a dozen districts.
The programme was scheduled to begin in Buxar and traverse 12 districts along the Ganges before culminating in Katihar in India.
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Kushwaha noted that the route of the "Nitish Samvad Yatra" coincides with the trajectory of the Ganges in Bihar, where leaders plan to interact with residents to take stock of the situation and hear their grievances.
The 30-year Ganges water-sharing treaty is set to expire in December this year.
Kushwaha stated that the JD(U)'s position aligns with the stand taken by former Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar, asserting that the interests of Bihar's population must be prioritised during any renewal discussions.
"Our leader Nitish Kumar has always spoken against the treaty. Now, as the term of the agreement is about to end, our stand is clear that it should not be renewed as it hampers the interests of people of Bihar," he added.
The JD(U) state president blamed the then Bihar government led by Lalu Prasad and the HD Deve Gowda-led central government for failing to consider the concerns of Bihar's residents when signing the treaty on 12 December 1996.
He further explained that silt accumulation on the Indian side of the Farakka Barrage results in excess water being diverted into other streams, causing severe flooding and destruction across Bihar.
Stating that the state of Bihar has endured these deluges for decades, Kushwaha affirmed the party's commitment to raising the concerns of the people of Bihar on the international stage.
