The ambitious plan of the previous BJP-led Karnataka Government to divert the waters of the Mhadei basin in order to feed the various irrigation and hydro-electric projects in its own state would obviate pronounced water shortages downstream into Goa thus leading to a divestiture of sustenance to the endemic flora and fauna whose habitat is invariably predicated upon the waters from the Mhadei basin propelling the continuity of life in the affected regions.
An appurtenant aspect which had earlier prompted the diversion of the waters from the Mhadei basin was the approval and notification of the Detailed Project Report (DPR) by the BJP-led Central government.
As per the common presumptions in Political Science which govern the ‘federal structure of state polity’ it is common knowledge that power and responsibility are distributed across different layers of the government.
Realistically, India is a federal system but with more of a tilt towards a unitary system of government. It has sometimes been considered as a quasi-federal system which exhibits features of both a federal and a unitary system of governance. Article 1 of the Indian Constitution states, ‘India, that is Bharat, shall be a union of states’.
Hence, until the Union government was led by the BJP and the Karnataka State government was also led by the regional members of the BJP, the hierarchical presuppositions which dictate the flow of power from the Union to the States would be seamless until that time when the beneficial arrangement continues.
But what happens when the Union government is fed by a different political ideology and the respective State government is subjugated upon the rebelliousness of its approach to politics as a secular force.
And moreover, what could be expected when the State which has been afflicted by the Centre’s decision to approve the DPR pertaining to the diversification of the Mhadei waters happens to be led by factions of the BJP that are subservient to the central nationalist political ideology.
The formula is more or less straightforward:
Union Government (BJP) plus the Goa State Government (BJP) minus the Karnataka State Government (Congress) in implementing the decisions which would ultimately impact the continual flow of the Mhadei river into Goa.
And to afford context to the above equation, it would only be apt to mention that the present State government in Karnataka as of 13th May, 2023 is predominantly occupied by majority members of the Indian National Congress.
In order to afford context to the ensuing academic rhetoric, it would be appropriate to enunciate that the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) (Sanskrit: Saṃyukt PragatishÄ«l Gaá¹habandhan) is a centre-left political alliance in India led by the Indian National Congress (INC).
According to Subrata K. Mitra (2011) in the Contemporary South Asia Journal at Volume 19, Issue 2 has sought to explain the resilience of India’s democracy in terms of the persistence of significant legislative output and policy continuity despite noisy adversarial politics.
The article entitled: “Adversarial politics and policy continuity: the UPA, NDA and the resilience of democracy in India” compared two different national regimes “ one by the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance government (NDA), 1999“2004, and the other by the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA), 2004“2009.
Accordingly, the findings were:
“Despite their rather different approaches to citizenship “ the former, based on Hindu nationalism, and the latter, a more inclusive, ‘secular’ conception of citizenship “ there is considerable convergence in legislative regimes, institutions to safeguard the interest of minorities and public subsidy…”
“Turning subjects into citizens “ no doubt with a sharp eye to their electoral potential “ has become accepted practice by both competing coalitions.”
“Despite its occasional breakdown, the paradoxical juxtaposition of adversarial politics and policy continuity is achieved because of the existence of a broad inter-party consensus on one coherent and meaningful citizenship regime and the high trust in which mediating institutions like the Supreme Court and the Election Commission are held.”
Ghatak et al. (2014) in their seminal article entitled “Growth in the Time of UPA Myths and Reality” published in the Economic & Political Weekly had challenged the prevailing view that the diminished electoral prospects of the United Progressive Alliance government was the result of neglecting growth to launch populist welfare schemes.
After having looked at a wide range of economic indicators thus comparing the performance of the UPA (United Progressive Alliance) to the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) regime, the UPA period has been characterised by faster growth, higher savings and investment, growing foreign trade and capital inflows, and increased infrastructure spending in partnership with private capital.
The UPA’s political troubles arose not from policies that hurt growth but from an inability to tackle the consequences of accelerated economic growth at the time, which included: an increased conflict over land, rent seeking and corruption in the booming infrastructure and natural resource sectors, the inability of public education to keep up with increased demand and rising aspirations, and a poor delivery of welfare schemes that were made possible by growing revenues.
Consequently, the rift between the Congress and the BJP governance structures are pronounced and to a certain extent even prolific in their ideological inclinations. The concern which should arise in the mind of every Goan now is whether the Congress-led Karnataka State Government would adopt derisive measures in diverting the Mhadei Waters to the detriment of the Goan Ecology or would it adapt into a more conciliatory approach towards environmental conservation that is deep rooted in their party’s ethos i.e. ‘Secularism’ and ‘Social democracy’.
Whatever may be the approach of the newly formed Karnataka State Government on the Mhadei issue, the BJP-led Goa government ought not to forget its dedication to the Goan cause of protecting the flow and course of the Mhadei along the Goan river banks.
