The Maharashtra Water Resources Regulatory Authority (MWRRA) has put a hold on the state government plan to privatise the Nira Deoghar Project on a BOT basis.

In a press release from Resources and Livelihoods Group, Prayas, the body that challenged the Maharashtra Krishna Valley Development Corporation (MKVDC) decision to privatize the Nira Deoghar, the MWRRA order is quoted, “The respondent MKVDC shall withdraw the advertisement (inviting EOI from prospective developers for privatisation of Nira Deoghar) within 15 days from the date hereof and shall not re-advertise until such time as the government resolution dated 15-07-2003 is revised.”

The order was issued on November 10 and was received by Prayas on November 15.

The privatisation was based on a state water policy declared in 2003 that accepted the policy of participatuon of private investors in development of water resource projects. Prayas has said that the MKVDC was trying to initiate privatization without taking due congnisance of the powers and functions of MWRRA.

“This could have led to un-regulated privatisation of the irrigation projects, without any scrutiny by independent experts or members of public,” the press note said.

Prayas said that this was first petition before the water regulatory authority, which is the first of a kind in India. The petition was filed on January 15.