With river water being an important source of irrigation in various states, Inter-State river water

disputes have only increased. The Cauvery dispute between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu has once
again reached the Supreme Court. But what are the major such disputes in the country?

Inter-State River water disputes

The Inter-State river water disputes are governed by the Inter-State Water Disputes Act, 1956. If a
State Government makes a request regarding any water dispute and the Central Government is of
opinion that the water dispute cannot be settled by negotiations, then a Water Disputes Tribunal is
constituted for the adjudication of the water dispute.
This act was further amended in 2002 to include the major recommendations of ‘The Sarkaria
Commission’. The amendments mandated a one year time frame to setup the water disputes tribunal
and also a 3 year time frame to give a decision.
List of major Inter-State Water disputes
Below is the list of major Inter-State water disputes as per the information shared by the Government
in the Lok Sabha.
Name of Date of
S.No Tribunal States concerned constitution Present Status

Maharashtra,
Godavari Andhra Pradesh,
Water Karnataka,
Disputes Madhya Pradesh
1. Tribunal & Odisha April, 1969 Award given on July, 1980

Krishna
Water Maharashtra,
Disputes Andhra Pradesh,
2. Tribunal -I Karnataka, April, 1969 Award given on May, 1976

Narmada Rajasthan,
Water Madhya Pradesh,
Disputes Gujarat and October,
3. Tribunal Maharashtra 1969 Award given on December, 1979

4. Ravi & Beas Punjab, Haryana April, 1986 Report and decision given in April, 1987.
 Name of Date of
S.No Tribunal States concerned constitution Present Status

Water and Rajasthan Clarification / explanation sought from the

Tribunal Tribunal by the party States. Also, a
Presidential Reference in the matter is
before Supreme Court and as such the
matter is sub-judice.

Cauvery Kerala, Report and decision given on 5.2.2007. A

Water Karnataka, Tamil Special Leave Petition (SLP) filed by party
Disputes Nadu and States in Hon’ble Supreme Court, as such
5. Tribunal Puduchery June, 1990 the matter is sub-judice.

Report and decision given on 30.12. 2010.

However, as per Supreme Court Order
dated 16.9.2011, till further order, decision
taken by the Tribunal on references filed by
States and Central Government shall not be
published in the official Gazette. As such,
matter is sub-judice. Term of the Tribunal
has been extended for a further period of
two years w.e.f. 1st August, 2014 to address
the terms of reference as contained in
section 89 of Andhra Pradesh
Reorganisation Act, 2014. The term of
KWDT-II has further extended for period of
one year w.e.f. 1st August, 2016. The
matter is under adjudication in the Tribunal.
Krishna Karnataka, The Government of Telangana has filed a
Water Telangana, SLP 33623-26 of 2014 and WP(C) 545 of
Disputes Andhra Pradesh 2015 in the Hon’ble Supreme Court in the
6. Tribunal -II and Maharashtra April, 2004 matter. The matter is sub-judice.

7. Vansadhara Andhra Pradesh February, Report and decision not given by the
 Name of Date of
S.No Tribunal States concerned constitution Present Status

Water &Odisha 2010 Tribunal. State of Odisha has filed an SLP

Disputes in Supreme Court against the appointment
Tribunal of one of the Members of the Tribunal. The
SLP in the matter filed by the State of
Odisha in the Supreme Court is pending.
The matter is sub-judice. Besides,
Vansadhara Water Disputes Tribunal in its
Order dated 17.12.2013 has directed to
constitute a 3-member Protem Supervisory
Flow Management and Regulation
Committee on River Vansadhara to
implement its Order. State Govt. of Odisha
has filed Special Leave to Appeal (Civil)
No.3392 of 2014 with regard to the
Vansadhara Water Disputes Tribunal
Judgement dated 17.12.2013. The matter is
sub-judice.

Mahadayi
Water
Disputes Goa, Karnataka November, Report and Decision not given by the
8. Tribunal and Maharashtra 2010 Tribunal.

Other Inter-State Water disputes

Apart from the above mentioned disputes, the following are the other Inter-State water disputes

 Indirasagar (Polavaram) Project, Andhra Pradesh

 Babhali Barrage Issue
 Mulla Periyar Dam Issue
It also must be noted that there are occasions where the states had resolved their disputes on water
sharing or joint projects through mutual discussions and agreements with/without the direct
intervention of the Central Government. As per information available in central water commission
publication “Agreements on Inter-State Rivers of Legal Instruments on Rivers In India”, about 114
inter-State agreements have been reached so far.
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