Keeping a close eye on the upcoming Lok Sabha elections in 2024, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh recently signed an MoU with the Ministry of Jal Shakti (MoJS) for the implementation of the ‘Modified PKC-ERCP’. This initiative integrates the original Parbati-Kalisindh-Chambal (PKC) with the Eastern Rajasthan Canal Project (ERCP) of the desert state with the national perspective plan of interlinking rivers (ILR) across the country.

For the past five years, the former Congress government in Rajasthan has been consistently advocating in public, urging the Prime Minister to fulfil his 2019 election promise by declaring the ERCP as a national project. However, the central government overlooked these requests. Before the 2023 assembly polls, the Congress even organised a big ERC yatra to press the issue. However, the Jal Shakti Minister kept on diverting it, turning the matter into a political agenda.

In its 2023-24 budget, the Gehlot government had announced plans to complete the ERCP at the expense of the state government. Initially, a grant of Rs 9,000 crore was announced in the budget on this count. Later, an additional sum of Rs 5,000 crore was also announced. Gehlot was persistent in his demand and kept on reminding Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP about the ERCP by mentioning it in his every speech.

The double-engine BJP government hopes to win 9 Lok Sabha seats in 13 districts of Rajasthan in the coming general election if this project sees the light of the day. This would be the first major poll ‘guarantee’ of the Modi government on ERCP to be fulfilled if the BJP is re-elected at Centre in 2024. Reports suggest that the MP government withdrew its Parbati-Kalisindh-Chambal link project from the Supreme Court on Friday. Rajasthan CM Bhajan Lal expressed hope that this move would pave the way for both the states to go ahead with the project.

Now, with the signing of this MoU, the BJP aims to garner support from farmers in 26 districts across the two states. The 13 districts in Rajasthan include Jhalawar, Baran, Kota, Bundi, Sawaimadhopur, Ajmer, Tonk, Jaipur, Dausa, Karauli, Alwar, Bharatpur and Dholpur. If declared a national project, these 13 districts will benefit from both drinking and irrigation water provided by the ERCP. Besides, the project, valued at over Rs 40,000 crore, will involve the construction of dams, canals and drinking water projects.

The ILR project, commonly known as the ERCP, was renamed by the central government after making some changes. According to MoJS, the preparation of the DPR of this Modified PKC-ERCP link is in progress. Based on the outcome of the DPR, the MoU would be finalised amongst the states of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and the Union Government, covering the scope of the work of the link project, sharing of water, exchange of water, sharing of costs & benefits, implementation mechanism and arrangements for management and control of water in Chambal basin, etc.

Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat requested both states to finalise the DPR of various components as early as possible to initiate the implementation of the link project.

In his couple of pressers in Rajasthan, Shekhawat said a sum of Rs 45,000 crore would be spent on the two states’ joint project and the scheme is likely to be completed in 5 to 6 years. With the new DPR, over 2,500 MCM (million cubic metre) of water would be available for irrigation and drinking, about five times more than the previous projections, in the next 30 years. Under the ILR project, the Centre would provide 90 per cent of its share and both MP and Rajasthan government will contribute Rs 4,000 crore each, the minister said.

During the ongoing assembly session, the Opposition Congress strongly criticised the BJP government, questioning the delay in the execution of the project. Leader of Opposition Tika Ram Jully said: “Is this project 50 per cent or 75 per cent water dependent as only 50 per cent water availability for irrigation could imply it’s just a drinking water scheme? He also urged the government to table the main copy of the MoU in the assembly for scrutiny.”

In an interaction with The Statesman, Rampal Jat, the national president of the Kisan Mahapanchayat, expressed doubts about the new MoU alleging that Rajasthan would not get its due share of drinking and irrigation water as proposed in the previous DPR-2017 and the Jal Shakti Minister’s claims were confusing unless the new MoU is made public.

The poll benefits for the double-engine BJP governments would now finally be decided by the voters of 13 districts in Rajasthan.