The first JSTC was held in December 2008 in New Delhi. [break]
“As directed by the Joint Committee on Water Resources, the JSTC will take up the technical details on water sharing, inundation and other issues,” Madhu Sudan Poudel, joint-secretary at the Ministry of Irrigation, said.
Poudel, who will be leading a 14-member team from the government´s side said, “A review of all existing technical committees´ work will take place in the meeting.”
The JSTC coordinates all technical committees and sub-committees under Joint Committee on Water Resources (JCWR). In the last JCWR meeting held in Pokhara in February, JSTC was directed to look into technical points of the Mahakali Treaty, especially those relating to water sharing clauses.
Nepal has been urging India for a Detailed Project Report on irrigation for a Nepali village, Chandani-Dodhara, across Mahakali River. As per the Mahakali Treaty, India has to supply water to the village for irrigation from Tanakpur.
Also, the current meeting will deliberate on the report of Standing Committee on Inundation problem (SCIP). Some 26 unresolved issues related to inundation were raised by India and Nepal in the last SCIP.
Similarly, a review of work undertaken by Standing Committee on Flood Forecasting, Joint Committee on Flood Management, High Level Technical Committee (HLTC) and Sub-committee on Embankment Construction (SCEC) will be taken up.
Most importantly, the government is seeking for the latest status report on Koshi breach closure from India.
“We are expecting a report by Koshi High Level Technical Committee, which will include a physical model for breach control,” Poudel further said.
Pointing at the Koshi breach closure works carried out by India recently, a ministry source said, "The Koshi breach work will be one of the main agenda of the JSTC as it has come to the government´s notice that the repair work said to have completed in July has not been totally satisfactory.”
Also, Gandak High Level Committee´s work will be taken up during the meeting. Talks will also be held on Pancheshwar Multipurpose Project.
akanshya@myrepublica.com
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