PANAJI: MP Shantaram Naik has given notice of a private member’s bill in the Rajya Sabha, for amending the National Waterways Act, 2016 , in order to denationalise six Goa rivers from the schedule of 111 rivers.
In a statement issued on Sunday, giving the information, Naik said that he proposes to introduce the bill during forthcoming winter session of Parliament.
The bill seeks deletion of six Goa rivers mentioned from the Schedule attached to the Act. The Union government introduced a Bill in Parliament recently, entitled Nationalisation of Inland Waterways Bill 2016, which was passed by both the Houses of Parliament and, is now law of the land.
The Act has sought to nationalise in all 111 rivers in the country which includes six rivers of Goa which are mentioned in the Schedule of the Act. The rivers include Chapora, Cumbarjua, Mandovi, Mapusa/Moide, Sal and Zuari.
Naik says that “if the intention of the government is to make the rivers more navigable then the proper course would have been to allot some financial assistance to Goa government for purpose of undertaking dredging work instead of resorting to nationalisation of rivers which involves the central government taking possession of the six rivers and some unspecified area of land.”
Legal status of the land, on both sides of the banks of the six rivers, Naik says, is still not known. Whether by virtue of nationalisation of six rivers a certain area on both sides of the six rivers is going to be the property of the central government is not clear, the MP says.
He also notes that it is not clear under what circumstances the state government gave approval to the bill, and whether impact on fishermen’s livelihood and environmental aspects have been taken into consideration or not.
At the stage of introduction of the bill, he says, the funding pattern has also not been quantified although it is learnt that besides the budgetary support, the funding will involve public private partnership, World Bank loan and not less than five to six other sources.
Naik has said in his statement that all decisions pertaining to the six rivers should be kept pending for the new state government to decide.
He said rallies and morchas were held in the state on the issue of nationalisation of rivers and when objections were raised in the Assembly, the House was assured that the proposed memorandum of association would be shown to the members, which has not happened.
