India Advances National Rivers Interlinking Programme as Ken-Betwa Project Enters Implementation Stage

India’s ambitious National Rivers Interlinking Programme has moved forward with the Ken-Betwa Link Project emerging as the only priority river-linking project under the National Perspective Plan to have entered the implementation stage. The government has also reported progress on several other proposed links across the Peninsular and Himalayan river systems, although many remain at the feasibility, detailed project report or pre-feasibility stages.

The Government of India had formulated the National Perspective Plan for Inter-Basin Water Transfer with the objective of examining the possibility of transferring water from river basins considered to have surplus flows to regions facing water deficits. Under the plan, 30 Interlinking of Rivers projects were identified, comprising 16 projects under the Peninsular Component and 14 under the Himalayan Component. The National Water Development Agency has been entrusted with carrying out studies, feasibility assessments and project preparation for the river-linking programme.

Among these projects, the Ken-Betwa Link Project, which will benefit parts of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, has progressed the furthest and has now entered the implementation stage. The project is estimated to cost around ₹44,605 crore and is designed to provide irrigation benefits to approximately 11.88 lakh hectares.

The project is also expected to provide drinking water to nearly 62 lakh people, while generating 103 MW of hydropower and 27 MW of solar power. The Ken-Betwa project has long been regarded as one of the most significant components of India’s river-interlinking strategy because of its potential to improve water availability in the drought-prone Bundelkhand region.

Environmental and social safeguards have been incorporated into the project structure. A comprehensive Environmental Impact Assessment has been completed for the Ken-Betwa Link Project along with an Integrated Landscape Management Plan. The plan includes measures for catchment-area treatment, biodiversity conservation, ecological management at the landscape level, command-area development and long-term monitoring of environmental parameters.

Land acquisition and Rehabilitation and Resettlement provisions have also been incorporated into the sanctioned project framework. According to the government, implementation of the project is required to comply with applicable environmental, forest-clearance and rehabilitation regulations.

Another major element connected with the river-linking programme is the Polavaram Irrigation Project in Andhra Pradesh, which incorporates the Godavari (Polavaram)-Krishna (Vijayawada) link. Unlike most other interlinking proposals, Polavaram has been accorded the status of a National Project and is being implemented by the Government of Andhra Pradesh and the Polavaram Project Authority.

The project envisages irrigation benefits for around 7.2 lakh acres while stabilising irrigation over another 23.5 lakh acres in the Godavari and Krishna delta systems. It is also designed to divert approximately 80 TMC of Godavari water into the Krishna basin.

Polavaram is expected to provide drinking and industrial water, including supplies for Visakhapatnam, while also supplying domestic water to an estimated 28.5 lakh people across 611 villages. The project includes a substantial power component with an installed hydropower capacity of 960 MW. The Centre has so far provided cumulative financial assistance of around ₹20,658 crore for the project.

Several other river-linking proposals under the Peninsular Component have progressed to the Detailed Project Report stage. These include the alternate Godavari-Inchampalli-Krishna Nagarjunasagar link, the Godavari-Inchampalli-Krishna Pulichintala link, the Krishna-Srisailam-Pennar link, the Krishna-Almatti-Pennar link and the alternate Pennar-Somasila-Cauvery Grand Anicut link.

The Cauvery-Kattalai-Vaigai-Gundar link in Tamil Nadu, the Bedti-Varda link in Karnataka and the Sarda-Yamuna link under the Himalayan Component have also reached the DPR stage.

The proposed Modified Parbati-Kalisindh-Chambal link, involving Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, has taken an important institutional step, with both States signing a Memorandum of Agreement for implementation.

However, not all the projects identified under the original river-linking plan are proceeding towards implementation. The Damanganga-Pinjal link, intended to augment Mumbai’s water supply, and the Par-Tapi-Narmada link involving Gujarat and Maharashtra have completed DPR preparation but have been removed from the list of priority links.

Similarly, further work on the proposed Netravati-Hemavati link in Karnataka has not been pursued beyond the pre-feasibility stage because the implementation of the Yettinahole project has affected the availability of surplus water in the Netravati basin for diversion.

In the Himalayan Component, most projects remain at the feasibility stage. These include the Kosi-Ghaghra, Gandak-Ganga, Ghaghra-Yamuna, Yamuna-Rajasthan, Rajasthan-Sabarmati, Chunar-Sone Barrage, Manas-Sankosh-Tista-Ganga, Farakka-Sundarbans, Ganga-Farakka-Damodar-Subarnarekha and Subarnarekha-Mahanadi links.

The proposed Kosi-Mechi inter-State link, which involved Bihar and Nepal, was dropped because of its international dimensions. Following a request from the Bihar government, the National Water Development Agency instead studied an intra-State version of the Kosi-Mechi link and submitted its Detailed Project Report to the State government.

The government has stated that environmental assessment is an integral part of the preparation of Feasibility Reports and Detailed Project Reports for all Interlinking of Rivers projects. These assessments examine both environmental and socio-economic impacts before individual projects can move towards approval and implementation.

The National Rivers Interlinking Programme remains one of India’s most ambitious long-term water-management initiatives, involving multiple river basins, States and, in some cases, international dimensions. While the majority of the 30 identified links are still at various stages of study and consultation, the commencement of work on the Ken-Betwa Link Project marks the transition of the programme from decades of planning towards actual implementation.

The status of the programme was detailed by Minister of State for Jal Shakti Raj Bhushan Choudhary in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha on August 10, 2026.

Source: PIB :https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2297168&reg=48&lang=1