An 18-member Nepali delegation led by Energy Secretary Balananda Poudel arrived here on Wednesday and is going to hold closed door meetings with Indian counterparts. [break]
The Indian delegation will be led by the secretary of water resources along with a 15 member-team from India.
The talks, which will basically revolve around hydro power generation, irrigation development, flood control/management and navigation, disaster management along with flood forecasting and warning system, among others, will also deliberate on controversial projects included in Mahakali, Koshi and Gandak treaties.
The 6000 MW Pancheswor Multipurpose Project in the Mahakali river, which India has pushed for of late, will be high on the agenda. The formation of the Pancheswor Development Authority (PDA) could be finalized during the meeting, according to sources in Delhi.
Such an authority would expedite the finalization of the Detailed Project Report of Pancheshwor Project. The last JCWR had decided to formulate the terms of reference of the PDA, which has not taken off so far.
Similarly, Sapta Kosi High Dam multipurpose project and Sunkosi Storage cum diversion scheme and Numure Project progress discussion will be held.
It is also said that the expansion of transmission line along the Indo-Nepal border would be taken up by Nepal side which is crucial for export of 200 MW additional power supply from India to Nepal as requested during the visit of Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai to India in October.
“It is a comprehensive meeting which will encompass all water issues between the two countries,” a source told Republica.
The JCWR and technical (Joint Standing Technical Committee (JSTC)) level meetings are held routinely between the two neighbors.
However, the Joint Ministerial Level Commission on Water Resources (JMCWR) has yet not met. The last JCWR meeting was held in Pokhara in 2009 and is held every two years.
The two-day meeting will bring out “agreed minutes” of the meeting detailing discussions and recommendations on ways to move forward.
India-Nepal water talks since the late 1990s are held in absolute secrecy given the sensitivity of the treaties and other related-issues, especially in Nepal.
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