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SYNOPSIS OF DEBATES* (Proceedings other than Questions & Answers) ______

Friday, August 2, 2019 / Shravana 11, 1941 (Saka) ______

ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE SPEAKER

Re: Emphasizing upon Janbhagidari on Food Nutrition Programme and

involvement of Members in this regard.

HON. SPEAKER: Our Prime Minister has taken a decision that all of us are obliged to associate ourselves with public participation to eradicate malnutrition from the country. This move will not only protect the mother from malnutrition but would ensure fairly healthy posterity. I urge upon all of you to create a mass movement on this count.

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* Hon. Members may kindly let us know immediately the choice of language (Hindi or English) for obtaining Synopsis of Lok Sabha Debates. THE JALLIANWALA BAGH NATIONAL MEMORIAL (AMENDMENT)

BILL, 2019

THE MINISTER OF STATE OF THE MINISTRY OF CULTURE

AND MINISTER OF STATE OF THE MINISTRY OF TOURISM (SHRI

PRAHLAD SINGH PATEL) moving the motion for consideration of the Bill, said: Jallianwala Bagh massacre took place on April 13, 1919. It occurs to me that Sadar Udham Singh was just five at that time and did harbour a kind of revolutionary flame in within which remained suppressed in his heart for a period of 21 years. Thereafter, he could not resist firing at General Dyre. Two days back was marked with death anniversary of martyr Udham Singh Ji and I pay tribute to him. This is the centenary year of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre. I express my deep sense of gratitude and feel beholden to the Prime Minister of the country for rolling out a nation-wise celebration in the fond memory of the valiant heros of uprisings martyred in massacre. The Government has come up with this

Amendment in an attempt to segregate the element of politics on this and has made a sincere effort to adduce a nationalistic and institutional paradigm to this. Sub- clause B of Section 4 of Jallianwala Act is going to be removed as there figured the name of the President of a political party therein and the same is being replaced with the word “Shatabdi”. National memorial is not meant for only the countrymen, rather there are thousands and lakhs of people who are devoted to Jallianwala Bagh, which is why this has been deleted. Moreover, the tenure of

Trustees nominated by the Central Government to the Trust is proposed to be terminated even before the completion of 5 years term. I hold the conviction that such institutions that are recognized not only within the nation but across the world must not be subjected to politicization. They should be given a national character instead.

SHRI GURJEET SINGH AUJLA initiating said: The massacre of April

13, 1919 was not an ordinary incident. It was at a time when the Rowlett Act had been enforced which led to nation-wise protest and there was huge public outrage across the country. Mahatma Gandhi had waged a mammoth campaign against it.

There was a massive movement on April 10, 1919 at Amritsar leading to the arrest drive which was bound to meet with stiff resistance by the masses, particularly by the local people as they were severely hurt. This ensued a meeting at Hindu Sabha

College on April 12, 1919 and it was decided that a meeting would be convened under the chairmanship of Mohammad Basheer and the leaders of the Congress party as a mark of protest against the arrest of Dr. Saiffudin Kichlu and Satyapal Ji.

On April 13, 1919 on people’s gathering at the venue, General Dyre launched fire at the masses by sealing all the five entrances in which around one thousand people were martyred and nearly 1500 got injured. It was in the wake of this fateful incident that the Congress Party took a decision to erect a national memorial at the site of incident. When the Constitution of our country came into force, the then

Government brought in a Bill with the provision of equal share of all the Trustees taken on board. I would like to suggest that the local Member of Parliament should be appointed as Chair of the Memorial. He must, of course, be a Trustee of the memorial since it is based in Amritsar.

SHRIMATI HARSIMRAT KAUR BADAL: Those who remember their history, progress. Today, we are discussing the incident of Jallianwala Bagh and I would like to inform the House that the facts should be recorded in the history.

Grandfather of a leader of this Party in Punjab had sent a telegram to General

Dyer approving his action at Jallianwala Bagh. This is recorded history. I would, once again, like to say that this Bill is a perfect Bill. How the leader of a Party which approved of the action at Jallianwala Bagh and attacked the Akal Takht

Saheb, be kept on the Trust of Jallianwala Bagh.

SHRI DAYANIDHI MARAN: Though, the present generation has never been a part of the freedom struggle but we respect the freedom struggle. We respect each and every freedom fighter. The Jallianwala Bagh massacre, where hundreds of Hindus were shot by General Dyer, was a shameful incident. It pained me to even imagine that. Let us not try to change the history rather we should write history and build India. This Congress Party is the by-product of the earlier

Congress Party. I request the Government to withdraw the Bill. PROF. SOUGATA RAY: The Jallianwala Bagh massacre was the most horrific massacre in the history of India's Independence movement. Gandhiji set up the Jallianwala Bagh Memorial Trust. This Act was enacted in the year 1951 and the President of Indian National Congress was there in the Trust since beginning. Now, this Government wants to remove "the India National Congress".

Today, the Government is trying to re-write the history. Indian National Congress carries the name of the freedom struggle. I totally oppose this Bill which is against the national history.

SHRI KANUMURU RAGHURAMA KRISHNARAJU: The Jallianwala

Bagh incident had shaken the whole country. Alluri Sitarama Raju was a very great freedom fighter from who had led the Rampa rebellion against the British. He was very much moved by the Jallianwala Bagh incident. I am bringing in this mention here because the committee has already approved the proposal to install his statue in the Parliament complex. The statue is also ready.

So, I request the hon. House to unveil his statue on this 100th Anniversary of

Jallianwala Bagh. There is a proposal in this Bill to remove the name of the

President of the Indian National Congress. As a middle path, the Government can consider to have any other leader of the Indian Congress Party in the Trust.

SHRI RAM MOHAN NAIDU KINJARAPU: We all have to remember that this is a discussion regarding Indian freedom struggle. It needs to be respected. It is not just one party that has fought for the freedom. We should not associate the freedom struggle with any political party. We also have to remember that there have been many freedom fighters from South India also. Alluri Sitarama

Raju was one of the greatest freedom fighters from the land of Andhra Pradesh.

We should take the freedom struggle as an opportunity for all Indians to unite together.

SHRI VINAYAK BHAURAO RAUT: I rise to support the Jallianwala

Bagh National Memorial (Amendment) Bill on behalf of my Party Shiv Sena. As I know Jallianwala Bagh is the memorial of cruelty of Britishers and symbol of patriotism as well. Jallianwala Bagh Massacre took place in the year 1919 and now it has completed hundred years. There was a movement of Salt Satyagrah in the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi. Britishers had imposed tax on salt and during that time Mahatma Gandhi crossed from Shiroda village which lies in my

Parliamentary Constituency Sindhudurg. Whenever freedom struggle was fought in the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi, all those places must be turned into a memorial to preserve the history.

KUNWAR DANISH ALI: When we heard about Jallianwala bagh massacre, our goose bumps. Discussion is being held in this House to change history. I just want to say that what we want to convey to our coming generations?

We are fighting on petty issues. Mahatma Gandhi had said so many things. We follow only those sayings of Mahatma Gandhi and Sardar Ballabh Bhai Patel which suit us. Who sacrificed their lives in the freedom movement, today effort is being made to change their history. I urge upon the Government to reconsider this

Bill.

SHRI RAMPRIT MANDAL: The Present Government wants to keep aside from politics all those memorials like Jallianwala Bagh and others related to freedom movement. Therefore, this Bill has been brought by the Government.

Jallianwala Bagh massacre is completing hundred years in this very year. More than thousand people had been killed in this massacre. Veer Kunwar Singh from our Bihar State led Bihar during the first war of independence. He was 80 years old at that time. I support this Bill on behalf of my Party the JDU.

SHRI BHARTRUHARI MAHTAB: In this new Bill very specific provisions are being amended. The whole Punjab was boiling at the time when

Jallianwala Bagh incident took place because it had witnessed two years of drought. Agriculture was failing. There was little employment there. In 1919, the

Roulette Act came into force. The whole country revolted against this Act and

Mahatma Gandhi gave a call of Non-Cooperation. That was the time of torture and barbarism that was unleashed out by Gen. Dyer. The Jallianwala Bagh Memorial

Fund was started in 1919. The site of the Jallianwala Bagh was acquired by this

Trust which was a creation of the Congress Party. Sardar Patel was the repository of all Trust's fund because he was the treasurer of the Indian National Congress.

Whatever money was there was in the name of the Congress Party. Therefore, I would say, let us not belittle ourselves by removing the President of Indian

National Congress. It was in 2006 that the UPA Government recognized the

Leader of Opposition as a trustee. It was a leader. There was no post of Leader of Opposition in 1951. Now the Government is making a provision, very right, that the leader of the largest party in Opposition in Lok

Sabha will be a member. What harm will it make if the leader of the Indian

National Congress Party becomes a trustee? Why do you have to change the structure of the well? It should be maintained in its original condition as the

Archaeological Survey of India does in the case of all its structures. Nothing should be changed and no tampering should be done. The eternal flame that always burns at Jallianwala Bagh should continue.

SHRIMATI SUPRIYA SADANAND SULE: We were brought up with the values of the Great Mahatma Gandhiji. We were highly influenced by the

Constitution written by Dr. Baba Saheb Ambedkar. Several trusts were formed by the then Congress Party. Fortunately, we never left any group out. Whenever we have anything, we take every voice along with us. For me it is actually surprising and disappointing that when you are in a position of such supreme power, there is no humility. There are a lot of things we have enough to fight against. So, rather than spending three hours on such a Bill, we should worry about the economy of this country.

SHRI BENNY BEHANAN: Firstly, let me pay my homage to the great martyrs by recounting the tragedy of April 1919. The Jallianwala Bagh massacre took place on 13 April , 1919. It was with this tragedy precipitated by the British that the freedom movement took an irreversible turn. The Trust referred to in the

Bill is the Trust formed by the Indian National Congress in 1920 in memory of the great sacrifice made by the freedom fighters of Jallianwala Bagh. In 1923 the

Trust purchased the land for the project. That being the fact, if the Government of the day and the Ruling Party have any issue with the Trust, I ask the Government to hand over the Trust back to the Indian National Congress to whom it legitimately belongs. So, let us not destroy our own history and its people by this

Bill which tries to obliterate the role of Indian National Congress and the symbols of the freedom movement. I humbly request the hon. Minister not to delete the

‘President of Indian National Congress’ as Trustee.

SHRI : Jallianwala Bagh massacre was not an ordinary incident. The seeds of this incident were sown immediately after the revolt of 1857. Thereafter, when Gandhiji returned to India from Africa, he raised his voice against the Rowlatt Act and he also carried out Satyagrah against it. Wide-spread protests were launched against the Rowlatt Act in each and every city of Punjab. General Dyre resorted to extreme brutalities to suppress the movement. His statement before the enquiry committee is a testimony of his sheer brutality. A child named Udham Singh was the witness of that massacre who later took a vow to resort to unfailing retaliatory move. More than 350 people were martyred and 1500 people were injured in the Jallianwala Bagh incident. So, I support this Bill which seeks to amend the Sections of this Bill.

SHRI DNV . SENTHILKUMAR S.: The Jallianwala Bagh National

Memorial (Amendment) Bill, 2019 amends that a trustee to be removed from the

Indian National Congress and to be introduced a member from the largest

Opposition party. In this regard, I would like to ask that is it really important to bring a Bill just to change the trustee member? The people of this country will judge this Government upon the magnanimity in taking step for the welfare of downtrodden, poor, children and woman of this country. So, we do not support this

Bill.

SHRI HARISH DWIVEDI: I rise to support the Jallianwala Bagh

National Memorial (Amendment) Bill, 2019. It is essential to remember Sardar

Udham Singh ji on this occasion. So, first of all, I would pay my homage to him and to the martyrs of Jallianwala Bagh incident. Through this Bill, we are not taking such step which may cause any injustice to the people of this country. Our

Government has built many such memorials of several eminent persons but our Government has never made a claim that member of such memorial trust would be from our party. We used to listen stories of the gory incident of Jallianwala Bagh during our childhood days and I feel that Jallianwala incident was the only incident which had shaken the whole nation. National memorial should be built on every place which is related to the freedom struggle of our country. There is also a need to build a national memorial at Chhawani Shahid in my district. The Government has been definitely striving for running these institutions in an impartial manner. I feel that if these institutions are represented by the Government and the people having history background, the functioning of such institutions could be streamlined.

SHRI RAHUL RAMESH SHEWALE: First of all, I would like to pay my homage to the martyrs of Jallianwala Bagh massacre. This Bill seeks to remove the President of Indian National Congress as a Trustee from Jallianwala Bagh

Memorial Trust. I would like to urge upon the Government that the history of freedom fighters across the country should be taught in this country. All the great men who had contributed towards attaining the freedom of this country, should be given due credit.

SHRI N.K. PREMACHANDRAN: Jallianwala Bagh Movement is known for a very big contribution of our martyrs in the Freedom Struggle. It is quite unfortunate that a political controversy has come in the name of martyrs and in the name of National Memorial like Jallianwala Bagh. What is the Government going to gain by deleting the words, “the President of the Indian National Congress” as a

Trustee. This Memorial should be used for integrating the people of this country, beyond politics, caste, religion and language. But now, we are dividing the people of the country in the name of a Memorial. The NDA Government should not misuse its political mandate for rewriting the history of Indian Independence. I urge upon the Government to withdraw the Bill.

SHRI JASBIR SINGH (DIMPA) GILL: I rise to oppose this Bill. INC was in the forefront of the freedom struggle and maximum of those who went to jail and faced atrocities were Congressmen. The present dispensation were nowhere or had no role in the freedom struggle but were helping the Britishers against the freedom fighters. Now they are trying to rewrite the history and rub the sacrifices of Congress in the freedom struggle. The should pressurize the UK to apologise for the worst condemnable act in which thousands of peaceful, unarmed Indians were killed in Jallianwala Bagh massacre.

SHRI RAMESH BIDHURI: The Congress was formed for the public movement only after the arrival of Mahatma Gandhi in the year 1915. Prior to it, it was none other than the Britishers who was leading the Congress. Whether the names of Satyapal ji and Kichlu ji should not have been included in the Jallianwala

Bagh Memorial. In 1947, Mahatma Gandhi was of the opinion that the election would be held according to the democratic process and the Congress should be relegated to the past.

SHRI BHAGWANT MANN: Hundred years have passed since the

Jallianwala Bagh massacre took place. The Jallianwala Bagh National Memorial are required to be made free from all sorts of politics. We failed to institute even a statue of the martyr Udham Singh Ji, however, we spend a lot of time here on discussing about the martyrs.

SHRI VIRENDRA SINGH: This Parliament has been a witness to a large number of debates on historical issues. I would like to thank the Government of

India for inspiring the Parliament of the country to discuss the matters of historical importance. The national movement should not be dragged into the political debate. I would like to submit that the efforts should also be made to ensure that the debate which is going on the historical issues does not turn into a farce.

History has so much vigour that no one can dare to change it. I agree to the fact that all the memorials of this country should be maintained by the Ministry of

Culture.

SHRI PRAHALAD SINGH PATEL replying said: I would like to place on record my appreciation for all the hon. Members who have participated in the debate. At the outset, I would like to say that this is a national memorial and hence it cannot be mere a political memorial. It is a day for us to congratulate our hon. Prime Minister for making efforts to make it the national memorial in its true spirit and to keep it away from all sorts of politics. This Trust was formed in 1951 and all its lifetime members such as hon. Jawaharlal Nehur, Dr. Saifuddin Kichlu and

Maulana Abdul Kalam Azad are no more. Whether it is not a fact that after their demise, the Congress took 40 years to appoint the permanent members of the

Trust. Would anyone in the country have objected had any member from the family of Shahid Sardar Udham Singh been a member of this Trust? You should accept the truth that it is a national memorial. Lot of works have been completed there and a few are still going on. The construction work is going on under the supervision of the ASI itself. Objection has been raised even against this. All year round, the Government has organized seminars in all the States of the country. On the centenary of the Jallianwala Bagh, programmes have been held all over the country in the memory of the martyrs. About which aspect of the construction, which is going on in Jallianwala Bagh, you have disagreement? In this incident common people became martyrs. Shouldn't those people get place in that Trust?

We are not trying to change the history of someone but we are trying to make history. There should be no politicisation under the changed circumstances after hundred years of a national memorial. We want that there should be no re-writing of culture and history but there should be, at least, some kind of revision. Don't you want that those people who have been forgotten or left out should also get the honour? We have never said that the President of the BJP will be in this Trust.

Today, it has completed hundred years. We bow to those who sacrificed their lives and condemn that exploitation. It is not just some common memorial or Trust for us. That place has the blood of our sacrificing forefathers, we will have to respect that. I request the House to pass this Bill unanimously so that this memorial gets the status of a national memorial.

The Bill was passed.

THE DAM SAFETY BILL, 2019

THE MINISTER OF JAL SHAKTI (SHRI GAJENDRA SINGH

SHEKHAWAT) moving the motion for consideration of the Bill, said: Safety of dams and their increasing age is a matter of concern for the engineers all over the world. Out of 5745 dams in the country, 293 dams are more than 100 years old.

More than 20 per cent of the total dams in the country have completed 50 to 100 years. Although, there is no direct connection between the danger of a dam collapsing and the age of a dam. There is need of paying more attention to the maintenance and proper management of the dams with their increasing age.

Collapsing of a dam not only creates threat to life and property but also affects the whole riverine ecology. Flora, fauna etc everything there gets affected by it. The safety of dams is an inter-state subject therefore it is imperative that a common protocol for the safety of dams is formulated for the entire country. So far, there have been 40 cases of collapse of dam in India. Presently, two institutions work in the country at the national level - National Committee on Dam Safety and Dam

Safety Organization. National Committee on Dam Safety determines the norms for the safety of large dams. It provides technical support to the States in formulation of policies along with improvement in systems, operations and maintenance and their protocols. Central Dam Safety Organization is there to implement the reports or policies formulated by the committee. Similar two tier arrangement exists in the States also. Since these institutions play the advisory role, they have no constitutional powers. Therefore, the seriousness with which work on this important subject should be undertaken does not happen. In this Bill also a provision has been made for the same two tiered system. We have also made a provision for constituting a National Dam Safety Committee and National

Dam Safety Authority. Committee is a technical body. It will work as a think tank constituting of members from States, representatives of Union Government and also subject experts who will together formulate the policies regarding nationwide

Dam Safety and Operations. One hon. Member repeatedly mentioned that there are 13 such dams in the country which are owned by some State but are situated in other States. There are serious security and safety shortcomings therein. In this situation, the National Dams Safety Authority will act as State Dam Safety

Organisation so as to ensure the safety of such dams. Today, adequate emergency action plan is not there in most of the dams of the country. The dam is such a huge structure that it coming under danger, may imperil the lives of lakhs of people together and devastate the entire ecological system. This is a matter of serious concern for us. The Government does not intend to possess the dams. Dams are the property of the States and it will continue to be theirs. The water stored in the dams will also be the property of the States and also the electricity generated through these dams will be the property of States. This subject is connected with the national security and also with the efforts to check the devastation. Keeping in view this pious sentiment, this Bill should be passed unanimously.

SHRI ADHIR RANJAN CHOWDHURY initiating said: All the Great

Civilisations in the world flourished on the basis of water management. Water management is inherent in our civilisation as well. The per capita storage capacity in India is a meagre 262 cubic meters. We have no dispute with the Government in so far as dam safety is concerned. But the experts have suggested that 2010 Bill may be brought under Entry 56 of the Union List to be expedient in public interest.

The 2010 Bill gave states the flexibility and option to enact the law but the 2019

Bill makes it mandatory for all the states to comply and takes away such flexibility.

The 2019 Bill would also override any existing Inter-State Agreement related to dam safety. The Bill specifies that the Central Government has the power to alter the function of the State Governments and State Committees on dam safety through a notification. The dam safety is essentially a regulatory function. The

CWC is in clear conflict of interest of being involved in the dam safety mechanism. The CWC is entrusted with different jobs. But, the Government has brought CWC in another job. The CWC has had a poor track record in dam safety.

The instance of Kerala inundation is case in point. The Government should conduct a pre-monsoon and post-monsoon inspection of all the dams. The Bill also does not address the issue of operational safety in sufficient manner. Dam inherits displacement of the common people. But there is no provision to offer compensation to the affected families. There was a proposal to build 7 dams in

DVC in my State, but only four have been built so far. I hope, hon. Minister will give good news to us by telling us something about DVC, Frakka Barraj and

Teesta project. Still, I would say that efforts should not be made to encroach upon the rights of the States as India is a federal country.

SHRI N.K. PREMACHANDRAN: At the time of introduction, I was opposing the introduction of the Bill on technical grounds and also merely on constitutional grounds. Still I support the contents of the Bill. It is because this

Bill is pertaining to the dam safety of the country as a whole. Dams have played a key role in the rapid sustainable agricultural and rural growth of the country. It is a big concern for India because 75 per cent of the large dams in India are more than

25 years old. Section 8 sub-section 1 clause 2 of the Bill says the Chairman of the

National Dam Safety Authority is a single man authority, a person who is not less than the rank of an Additional Secretary. This means the seriousness has not been put on the Dam Safety Authority. It is better to ensure that a competent technical person be the head of the authority with more Members. The second objection to the Bill is regarding section 9(3). There is no appellate authority to appeal against the decision of the single-member authority. The third one relates to section 24(1).

It is because a dam belongs to a particular State but it is being situated in another

State. No State can give justice to another State. My suggestion is, let the Kerala representative and the Tamil Nadu representative be there in the National

Committee on Dam Safety as permanent members. Then only, we can resolve the dispute in an amicable manner. The whole dam safety mechanism is dominated by the Chairman of the Central Water Commission. The track record of dam safety of the Central Water Commission is not good. Kindly review that position. My third point is, the Bill does not define the term stakeholders. My fourth point is that the

Bill does not mention the qualification and the independent track record of the members to be appointed in the National Committee on Dam Safety and the State

Committee on Dam Safety and there is no mechanism for their selection. My fifth point is that the dam safety should be integrated with the land use planning. My sixth point is that the Disaster Management Authority does not have a significant role as per the Bill. The Bill is too focused on the structural safety of dams and not so much on the operational safety. A mandatory provision to have the Dam Break

Analysis should be compulsory for all the dams.

SHRI A. RAJA: I rise to oppose the Bill. The Bill is an onslaught on the federal structure of the Constitution. When both the subjects, land and water and storage of water, that is dam, are both within the purview of the State, how can this

House bring in a law? Almost 30 years back, a separate Directorate was created by an Executive Order in Tamil Nadu in this regard. But no consultation has been done with the Government of Tamil Nadu by the Central Government in this matter. The World Bank has carried out an exhaustive study of dams in the global context and has concluded that there should not be a central legislation. Through this Government wants to create four bodies, namely, National Committee on Dam

Safety, National Dam Safety Authority, State Committee on Dam Safety and State

Dam Safety Organisation. I would like to know as to how the National Committee on Dam Safety can be advisor as well as regulator. The National Dam Safety

Authority should have been made accountable to the National Committee on Dam

Safety. The National Dam Safety Authority should not have been given power to adjudicate. The State Committee on Dam Safety has been designed in such a way that it disturbs the federal system of the Constitution. SHRI P. P. CHAUDHARY: I rise to support the Dam Safety Bill, 2019. I would like to tell the House that it is within the competence of this Parliament to legislate with respect to this subject. The proper surveillance, inspection, operation and maintenance of dams is of utmost importance. The construction of dams involves huge investment of funds. All the authorities which predate this Bill had just an advisory role. Now, they have been given statutory powers. This Bill does not aim to disturb the ownership of dams. As far as the power of Central

Government to issue directives to the States is concerned, it must be given to the

Central Government.

SUSHRI MAHUA MOITRA: Water is a resource which has traditionally been governed by the three doctrines the world over, namely, public trust, riparian rights and proper appropriation. This particular Bill takes away the power of the

State Government to manage dam safety and, thus, it infringes upon the federal structure. This Bill is completely silent on the devolution of funds from the Centre to the States to carry out the various measures for dam safety. The National

Committee on Dam Safety will be consisting of 21 members and all of them are nominated by the Central Government. The States should have representation in this Committee. The National Dam Safety Authority should have been put under a senior level officer. The constitution of the State Committee on Dam Safety should be left to the States. The Union Government should take financial responsibility for dam safety. The State Dam Safety Organisation should not override the existing State level bodies. The Section 41 which deals with punishment for obstruction in duty, is a very draconian Section. The National Dam

Safety Authority should play a supportive and consultative role. The Chairman of the Central Water Commission should not be the Chairperson of the National

Committee on Dam Safety because it causes conflict of interest.

SHRI MARGANI BHARAT: The Bill aims to provide a robust legal and institutional framework of State and Central Governments for safety of dams. The

Bill further envisages prevention and mitigation of dam-failure related disasters by way of proper surveillance, inspection, operation and maintenance of all dams in the country to ensure their safe functioning. Some states are opposing this on the ground that it encroaches upon the sovereignty of States. I urge upon the

Government to show magnanimity and clear this scepticism. In spite of having abundant resources and an average rainfall in the country being about 4,000 billion cubic meters, we are still unplanned. Regarding Polavaram project, an amount of

Rs. 6727 crore has been released by the Central Government and still the balance amount of Rs. 4554 crore is yet to be reimbursed by the Central Government to the

State. This project should be considered to be a national project. I would like to remind this House that nearly 1300 dams were constructed in the British era, and unsafe dams can cause hazard to human life, flora and fauna, public and private assets and environment.

SHRI SHRIRANG APPA BARNE: Several accidents took place in the past due to improper maintenance of the dams. 670 dams in the country are located at such places which fall in high seismic zones. The capacity of several dams are declining due to deposition of silt. Whether the Government proposes to take some action in this Dam Safety Bill to extract silt from the rivers. There are several instances of corruption in the construction of dams. Stringent action must be taken in such cases. The major cause of pollution in rivers is due to release of drainage water in the rivers. Today the quality of water in all the dams of the country has declined with the rise of population. While acquiring land for Pavna Dam, the farmers were promised to provide alternate land but till date Government has not fulfilled its promise to provide land to the farmers of Maval. Government should take care that the rights of the states may not be compromised as a result of this

Bill.

SHRI RAMPRIT MANDAL: This important Bill influences multipurpose uses like irrigation, electricity generation, flood control, drinking water, industries and storage of ground water. This law includes all the dams which have the height of 10-15 meters and more. This law gives the provision for the constitution of

National Dam Safety Committee, National Dam Safety Authority, State Dam Safety Committee and State Dam Safety Organisation. There are around 5,344 big dams in the country in which around 293 dams are 100 years old or more. 1,041 dams are 50-100 years old. Around 40 dams are in a dilapidated state. Due to lack of proper maintenance of dams in North Bihar, thousands of people are losing their life every year. Floods cause loss of life and property worth lakhs of rupees. The excess water coming from Nepal during monsoon may be controlled and Bihar should be saved from flood. According to the international policy, a treaty may be signed between Nepal and Central Government for water. A high dam may be constructed on Bihar-Nepal border. This will also help in the generation of electricity and revenue as well. On the other side, Aurangabad, Sasaram,

Jahanabad, Nalanda, Arwal, Nawada and Sheikhpura districts in South Bihar are facing drought due to the low rainfall by 36 per cent from average. Immediate action may be taken in order to free Bihar from its agonies by conducting a survey of the flood and drought situation in Bihar.

*SHRI SUNIL DATTATRAY TATKARE: This Bill can change the water resources scenario in India. But, I find some shortcomings in this Bill. You have covered all the major dams under this legislation but you have missed out minor and medium dams. I request you to include medium and minor projects too.

Several 50 to 100 years old dams have accumulated silt and hence their storage

* Original in Marathi. capacity has been reduced to 60% only. So, desilting work should be carried out.

For realizing the dream of providing ‘Har Ghar Jal’, no provision of funding has been made in this Bill. The data regarding safety and security of the dams should be made public annually and there is no mention in the Bill in this regard.

Sufficient amount of fund should be allocated for desilting work. I hope that the water crisis would be resolved in the near future and water disputes would be settled.

SHRI BHARTRUHARI MAHTAB: I would say the Dam Safety Bill,

2019, which is before us today, is a much improved version of the Bill of 2010 that was referred to the Parliamentary Standing Committee. However, a number of

States have expressed their apprehension about the Bill. An apprehension is there that the Union may take control over all the dams. Through this Bill, the

Government is acquiring the power. The Government wants to give certain things, even advice from the top. The States should be empowered so that they will take care of themselves because these dams have been erected by the States themselves from their funds. The Dam Safety Bill, 2019 continues to suffer from a number of lacunae. For example, the whole dam safety mechanism is dominated by the

Central Water Commission with Chairperson of CWC being the Chairman of

National Committee on Dam Safety. The CWC is also involved in policy making about dams, in their approval, guiding designs, financing, monitoring, approving seismic parameters, flood forecasting and so on and so forth. Dam Safety is essentially a regulatory function and thus CWC has clear conflict of interest in being involved in the dam safety mechanism. The CWC also has had very poor track record in dam safety and the Kerala episode is the latest instance. The second point is that the dam safety mechanism has to essentially work in public interest and the people at risk are the biggest stakeholders, not only the State Governments.

Unfortunately, the Bill does not even define who are the stakeholders of dam safety. The Bill requires appointment of up to three, out of a total of 21 members, specialists in the field of dam safety and allied fields. But there is no mention of these persons having an independent track record, nor is there any mechanism mentioned as to how they will be selected. I should also mention that dam safety is a primary concern of this country. To protect life and property of the people of our country, there is a need, but it has to be a regulatory mechanism. That regulatory mechanism cannot be a top-down approach. Empower the states, they should do it.

SHRI KOTHA PRABHAKAR REDDY: There are about 5300 large dams in India, out of which around 293 are more than 100 years old and 1041 are 50 to

100 years old. Dams play a key role in fostering rapid and sustained agricultural growth and development and they are vital for ensuring water security of the country. An unsafe dam can be a hazard to human life, flora and fauna, public and private assets and the environment. As many as 14 dams in Telangana State require urgent repairs. In September 2017, our Telangana State had sent proposals to the Central Water Commission seeking Rs. 645 crore for rejuvenation of 29 old dams. The said proposals were forwarded to the World Bank for funding. But the funds are still awaited. I also request the Government to accord national status to water projects in Telangana like Kaleswaram and Palamuru Ranga Reddy.

Additional grants may be sanctioned for irrigation purpose for reservoirs upto 20 tmc of water. States may be empowered with full powers to undertake their maintenance, protection and everything concerning this subject. Krishna and

Godavari rivers have hundreds of small dams and reservoirs which are the lifeline of our Telangana State people in their day-to-day life, and they need to be protected on top priority.

ADV. DEAN KURIAKOSE: Every man-made structure has its own lifespan. There are serious and important study reports that came out with regard to the Mullaperiyar dam. The dam is situated at an earthquake zone. The Central

Water Commission’s Report, 1979 pointed out that the dam is in a dangerous condition and recommended that it should have been decommissioned decades before. There must be a comprehensive study and assessment of those dams which are vulnerable to disasters. Clause (6) of this Bill talks about the function of the

National Committee on Dam Safety. I am suggesting that the First Schedule must include an entry regarding the study of the present conditions, structural details and expected lifespan of those dams which have already crossed 100 years of age. The dams, which have crossed 100 years, must be categorized separately and there must be a separate provision for such dams. The National Dam Safety Committee must be conferred with the power to determine the maximum water level in each dam, according to its capacity. The capacity of the dam must be assessed on the basis of its age and other relevant factors. All the stakeholders should be heard in the process of determining the water level. More deliberation with the stakeholders and States is required before the enactment of this Bill.

SHRI TAPIR GAO: I have gone through this Bill. Opposition Members say that the Bill is a kind of challenge to the federal structure. Clear and detailed guidelines have been set up. So, there is no scope of mismanagement and misuse of this Bill in future. The Central Water Commission has given clearance for construction of a multi-purpose project in Dibang Valley with a capacity of 2880 megawatt. In my native area Siang, a project with 1700 megawatt capacity has been approved. In Subansiri, a 2000-megawatt capacity project in Luhit has also been sanctioned. There is an apprehension in the minds of the people of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. So, we need to remove this apprehension from the minds of the people and enlighten them about the usefulness of dams at the river basins of

Arunachal Pradesh. I would like to see a unified government machinery to establish good kind of strong mega dams in Arunachal Pradesh so that we can regulate water flow to Assam and Bangladesh. I would like to tell Ministry of

Jalshakti that it should not go with only safety but also go downstream. Develop

North-Eastern states so that power can be developed, as per the necessity of the future, in the North-Eastern States of this country.

*SHRI THOL THIRUMAAVALAVAN: Tamil Nadu is opposing this Bill.

The reason for that opposition is that if a dam owned by a State is situated in another State, then the powers of the Dam Safety Organization will be of the

Authority. The Union Government is therefore taking charge of the control of four dams owned by Tamil Nadu. Tamil Nadu will be worst affected if the Union

Government captures all the powers relating to the maintenance and safety relating to all these dams. On the basis of agreements between two States, these dams are being maintained. Once this Bill becomes an Act, the understanding and harmony between the two States will be affected. This will pave way for taking away the rights and sovereignty of the States concerned. Union Government has so far taken decision against Tamil Nadu in all the river-water sharing disputes.

Therefore, hon. Minister should refer this Bill for the consideration of the Standing

Committee of Parliament.

* Original in Tamil. *SHRI P. RAVEENDRANATH KUMAR: As per Section 24(1) of the

Bill, if a dam by a State is situated in another State, National Dam Safety

Organization will function as State Dam Safety Organization and keep the control of that dam. I request the hon. Minister to clarify on this. Even though dams of

Tamil Nadu are situated in Kerala territory, Tamil Nadu is looking after the maintenance of these dams under a longstanding agreement. Tamil Nadu

Government have urged that until a consensus is arrived at through the consultation process with the States concerned, this Dam Safety Bill should not be introduced rather withdrawn. Some vested interests are creating panic, instilling fear and spreading rumours about the dam safety and dam's failure. I request the hon. Minister to add stringent measures in this Bill in order to control such malicious activities. Because such activities with ill intention, affect the maintenance work of dams. I also urge that without affecting the interests of the

State of Tamil Nadu this Dam Safety Bill should be implemented. I also request the hon. Minister to kindly consider the demands of Tamil Nadu.

SHRI : I would like to thank you for allowing me to speak on the discussion taking place on Dam Safety Bill, 2019 in the House.

Certainly, the Centre and the States have equal right on the dams. The Minister has also made it clear that the Government is not snatching away the right of the States

* Original in Tamil. under it. The Bill will help in reforming the Dam Safety provisions and it will ensure the safety of the dams under construction. Therefore, taking necessary steps for ensuring safety of the dams becomes a national responsibility. This Bill will prove effective in increasing the irrigated area in those regions where irrigated areas do not exist and also help in transforming them. A terrible situation has occurred several times in Rajasthan due to flooding of seasonal rivers during monsoon season. Therefore, a plan should be formulated for construction of dams around their course of flow so that the water crisis can be resolved. Besides, I have a suggestion for the Hon. Minister that a report should be sought regarding the status of all the dams in Rajasthan. A lot of encroachment has taken place at the

Ramgarh dam of the Ramgarh area and even the Supreme Court has ordered to remove the encroachment but despite that, the encroachment at the Ramgarh dam is not getting removed. Besides, water provision should be made for irrigation of various areas of Marwad region.

SHRIMATI RAMA DEVI: The Dam Safety Bill has been presented in

Lok Sabha to ensure safety, proper monitoring, inspection and operation of dams in the country and I appreciate such move. The duties and functions of all the committees proposed in the Bill have been defined. Through this Bill, water can be supplied to water scarcity areas from those areas having excess of water so as to address the problem of farmers. I have witnessed the flood situation in my parliamentary constituency, Sheohar, Sitamarhi, Motihari districts of Bihar where people have suffered loss of life and property which is quite painful. There is a need to construct dams for storage of water. The Government should hold positive dialogue with the Government of Nepal so as to find a solution of the problem at the earliest. There is a provision to provide fund for relief measures under the

National Disaster Response Fund, but I urge that compensation for loss caused by flood should be provided through the said fund. The main concern related to large dams is that these dams are not maintained properly. Lakhs of people are living around large and small dams across the country including my parliamentary constituency, Sheohar. It is matter of concern that about 75 per cent of the large dams are more than 25 years old and about 150 dams are more than 100 years old.

I support this Dam Safety Bill presented by the Government in public interest from the bottom of my heart.

SHRI PRADYUT BORDOLOI: I actually think that the present Bill is half-sighted and lacks a broader perspective. Take the case of the Brahmaputra

River system. The Brahmaputra is the only main river in the whole world. The

Chinese have built several big dams on it and hydro-power projects, and there are unconfirmed reports that they are planning to divert the water to their dry areas. If

China diverts the water of the Brahmaputra River in the Tibet region, then the mighty river Brahmaputra is likely to dry out in the downstream areas. And then, the famous biodiversity of the eastern part of India that we all know of will also wither. Livelihood of millions of people up to Bangladesh will be in jeopardy. Jal

Shakti Mantralaya should arrange to have a multilateral agreement with different countries. Brahmaputra is not a one-state river. It flows through several countries like China, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and of course India. So, why cannot we have a multilateral agreement? There has to be a reservoir regulation policy with an international protocol. That is the need of the hour.

SHRIMATI NAVNEET RAVI RANA: Brahmsati dam has been lying pending in our forest area for several years. Chikhaldara is a famous tourist spot in

Vidarbha region but it has not been well known even in Maharashtra only due to drinking water problem. If Brahmsati dam is constructed in Chikhaldara , the tribals and people belonging to Gawali community living here alongwith

Paratwada, Achalpur, Daryapur and surrounding areas are likely to get water. It would help tourism grow here and the people living there would get employment opportunities. The contractor and the company getting the contract for dam project should also be given the responsibility of maintenance of the dam so that they take care of safety aspects at the time of construction. Dam projects should be completed within specified time limit. The problems of those farmers should be addressed whose land was acquired 20 to 25 years ago for construction of the said dam. As of now they have neither land nor jobs or other sources of employment. I would like to know from hon. Minister regarding future plans in regard to four dams failure in Maharashtra.

SHRI JAYADEV GALLA: I would like to thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak on the Dam Safety Bill 2019. Clause 5 of the Bill talks about the composition of the National Committee on Dam Safety. I am not happy the

Government is appointing only seven Members from 29 States and that too on a rotation basis. When we have representation of all the States in other forum like

GST Council, what is the harm in providing a similar provision in the National

Committee on Dam Safety? The Polavaram project in the State of Andhra Pradesh was given the status of the national project by the Union Government. The

Polavaram project was first conceptualized in 1941 at a cost of Rs. 6.5 crore. In

2014, the Andhra Pradesh Re-origination Act declared it a national project and the

Polavaram Project Authority was set up. In January 2019, we entered the Guinness

Book of World Records by pouring 32,100 cubic meters in 24 hours to complete the major portion of the project. Much of the money has already been spent and we are waiting to be reimbursed by the Central Government. The approved funds of Rs. 55,000 crore should be released and the Polavaram project should be completed in a time-bound manner. The Government is making the Central Water

Commission as the Chairman of the National Committee on Dam Safety. It would mean that the CWC would function as the advisor and regulator. The hon'ble Minister, on record, has said that there are nearly 5400 large dams in the country.

Of this, 293 are more than 100 years old and 1000 dams are 50 to 100 years old. I would like the hon'ble Minister to explain the House as to what he is going to do under the proposed Bill for the structural and operational safety of these dams.

SHRI HAJI FAZLUR REHMAN: I would like to draw the attention of the government to a serious problem being faced by my constituency. Behat,

Saharanpur and Deoband tehsils in Saharanpur Lok Sabha Constituency have many intermittent monsoon rivers flowing there. Every year, flood causes massive havoc and large scale erosion in this area. I request the government to get repaired the broken embankment and dams in these villages. The bridge in Maganpura village at Badshahi Bagh, Behat tehsil was washed away during the flood of 2012.

The previous government announced to rebuild the dam, but the work has not been started as yet. The flood turns Hussain Malakpur, Shahpur and Dabkora villages in

Behat Tehsil into island. So I request the government to construct the embankment and dam there.

*SHRI P. R. NATARAJAN: This Bill is aimed at taking away the rights of the State Governments. Union Government is trying to bring the safety of all the dams under its control without consultation from the State concerned. In my

Coimbatore constituency and the neighbouring Tiruppur constituency, the supply

* Original in Tamil. rights for drinking water has been given to a Multinational company. This Bill is aimed at helping the Government to fulfil its hidden agenda. No individual can file a case against this amendment Bill. Only the Authority can file a case. This itself is violation of power. Union Government wants to treat a State as a municipality.

I urge the Union Government to withdraw this Dam Safety Bill, 2019.

SHRIMATI SUMALATHA AMBAREESH: It is a very important Bill given that a number of dams in our country are over 100 years old. My State

Karnataka has 236 large dams out of which 44 dams are 100 years old or more.

Cracks have been noted in the structure of Krishnaraja Sagar Dam which falls in my Parliamentary Constituency Mandya. This is due to illegal mining activity and high intensity quarry blasts. I would like to request the Hon. Minister to include this dam also in this most important Bill to prevent any potential disasters arising out of this in my region Mandya.

SHRI TEJASVI SURYA: The first time the idea of bringing about a Bill of this nature to protect the dams of this country originated in the year 1982. This particular attempt, I am sure, will bear fruit because this particular Bill is brought about under Article 246 of the Constitution of India read with Entry 56 and 91 of

List 1. It is being argued by the Opposition that the Union Government does not have the legislative competence to legislate on matters. The Union Government derives the legislative competence to legislate on all matters under Article 246 of the Constitution of India. The legislation is primarily to look after maintenance, surveillance and safety of the dams and has nothing absolutely whatsoever in controlling the ownership, controlling of water or any other such ancillary subjects which the Opposition may have any fears over. Two specific issues are attributed to make this legislation imperative. As per the CAG Report of 2017, only two

States, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal, out of the 17States conducted a pre-monsoon and post-monsoon audit on the safety of their dams. As per the World Bank report of 2002 most of the dam safety regulations are made at the federal level in the most of the countries. There are penal provisions in this Bill, which will enforce the guidelines of the National Dam Safety Authority as well as the State Dam Safety

Organizations. This Bill will be a more comprehensive legislation if consequent penal provisions are also incorporated in this Bill to fix the accountability of errant officials or errant owners of the dams.

SHRI SURESH PUJARI: The Dam Safety Bill, 2019 is aimed at developing uniform safety procedure for all the dams across the country. In the locality of the place where I come from, there is Hirakud Dam, which is the longest major earthen dam of the world. During the construction of Hirakud Dam, 25,000 families were ousted. These people have not been rehabilitated and neither they have been paid compensation. So, I demand that the relatives of the persons, who have been displaced, should be paid adequate compensation. The health of the dam is very poor and many big holes are there. The Hirakud Dam is dying a natural death. So, it needs immediate repairing. Unless it is repaired, this dam may collapse at any time. Hirakud supplies water to industries and these industries are discharging their waste in the river which is causing rising cases of cancer in

Bargarh Tehsil. I request the hon. Minister to resolve the problems of Hirakud at the earliest.

SHRI VIJAY KUMAR HANSDAK: I would like to raise some issues related to the dams in Jharkhand. The Government has acquired 94 Sq. Km. of land from Jharkhand for Masanjor Dam but only 8,100 hectare of land in

Jharkhand is being irrigated through this dam whereas 2,26,000 hectare of land in

West Bengal is being irrigated through it. An agreement was signed in 1978 to build Sidusawari Dam for Jharkhand but that has not been done. Only 12% of the land is under irrigation in Jharkhand. Godda district in Jharkhand was slated to receive water from the Chanan Project in Bihar but no water has been supplied here even in the 50 years. Jharkhand is suffering most in respect of dam projects.

Radu river pond project was started in 1989 but it is still incomplete. Maithen,

Masanjor, Panchayat Gumani projects are lying pending for the last two decades. I would like the Government to do justice with Jharkhand.

SHRI GUMAN SINGH DAMOR: We want to double the income of farmers, we want to provide irrigation facility for every agricultural field. We talk about 'Per Drop More Crop', but we cannot achieve all these things without dams.

There is acute shortage of water in my constituency. There is also the problem of drinking water in my constituency. Ground water in my area has fluoride content.

Hence, there is need to build dams in my constituency. I would like to draw the attention of the hon. Minister towards the dam built on Narmada river in the

Khargone district in Madhya Pradesh. The construction of this dam was completed around eight to ten years ago, only its gate has to be closed. There are some legal issues in closing that gate. We would be able to provide water to Indore, the industrial capital of Madhya Pradesh, only when the gate of the dam is closed.

There is provision of National Committee on Dam Safety in this Bill, which consists of dam experts and members nominated by the Central and State

Governments. There are different reasons for the failure of different kinds of dams. This Bill was essential to address all these causes for dam failure.

SHRI BALAK NATH: Our hon. Prime Minister has the foresight that the most prominent need of our country in future is the need of potable water. The

Central Government should ensure the proper safety of all such dams which receive water flow. There are a number of dams around Alwar district namely

Silised Dam, Jaisamand Dam, Pratap dam, Baleta dam, Vijay Mandir dam. I have come to know that there is very large quantity of silt in these dams. There should also be provision of extracting out silt deposited in these dams and a proper budget allocation therefore should be utilized in coordination of State Governments. A

Commission should be constituted to identify the places at which dams can be built in future.

SHRI ARJUNLAL MEENA: My Parliamentary Constituency Udaipur is known as the city of lakes. Jaisamand Dam which is around 289 years old is located in this area. Mahi Bajaj Sagar Dam situated in Bansvada district is also a major dam in Udaipur Division but overflows every year. The excess water from this dam should be channelized to Jakham Dam in Pratapgarh district from where it may be channelized to Dariabag and from Gravity to Jaismund. I request the

Government that the excess water of Mahi should be channelized to Jaisamand dam and supplied to Udaipur. In order to provide potable water to the people of

Udaipur,1000 MCFT water should be supplied to Udaipur city through Dewas

Dam Project.

SHRI UDAY PRATAP SINGH: I would like to request you to include one representative of the fishermen community and another representative of the farmers' community in the National Dam Security Committee constituted on the basis of Dam Safety Bill. The committee will regulate dams, check the dams from destruction, enquire into the causes of destruction of the big dams and monitor all of them. This has a provision of offence and its punishment. When a complaint of an offence is lodged by Government or any authority constituted under the Bill, it will be a cognizable offence. I would like to know about the third party to fire the criteria of an offence in case of Government failure or federation failure. If any personal complaint is received in this regard; its cognizance should be taken. I would like to discuss about the Tawa project which provides irrigation water to three to four districts. There is no continuous silt accumulation there. A monitoring committee to be constituted in this regard will look after its management and security and also the restoration system of reducing capacity of water storage of the dam, the measures to increase the capacity of checking the water. The Barangi dam was constructed in the year 1982 and Narsinghpur district got its supply of water in 2001-07. The dam's construction work kept on going continuously for about 25 years. There should be check and balances in this regard, the dam should be constructed within a prescribed time limit so as to avoid cost exceeding. The water from the Bargi is to be supplied to Satna. I would like to ask the reasons for constructing a tunnel on plain land. The constructed part of the tunnel in four and a half kilometers only and the remaining part of twelve kilometers is yet to be constructed. That canal may pass through the land. It should be checked and measurement be taken to supply water of Bargi dam to everywhere.

SHRI DHARAMBIR SINGH: We have been providing water to each place from Northern to Western India through a river system emerging from the Himalayas. The Bhakra Nangal Dam on the river Satluj has a lot of silt. Firstly, we will have to bring out this silt from the dam. Secondly, the water during rainy season spilling over from the dams built on the river Ravi, Beas and Satluj reaches to Pakistan. I request to construct a dam at Harik Port or somewhere near it so as to supply water to Rajasthan through Rajasthan canal. Bhakra Dam Management

Board has the majority of personnel belonging to Punjab who work as its technical and administrative staff. These officers use the water as per their requirement due to which Delhi, Haryana and Rajasthan suffer. Hence, there should be officers from Haryana or Rajasthan for its share of water. The Kishau dam supplies water to six states and most of the water is to be supplied to Delhi, Rajasthan and

Haryana. This is highly needed, this issue should be solved as soon as possible.

Sharada- Yamuna, a big project needs to be considered.

THE MINISTER OF JAL SHAKTI (SHRI GAJENDRA SINGH

SHEKHAWAT) replying said: The Dam Security Bill is related to the safety of lives and property of the people living in its operation area. The country had been waiting for this important Bill for the last 40 years. We have started a new journey to create a new atmosphere of safety in the country, so that India could be prosperous in a secured atmosphere. The Government has achieved success in creating this faith in the country as well as the world. The House agrees to the point that the Parliament has the powers under the constitutional provisions to enact law keeping in view the comprehensive interests of the safety of its citizens.

Either it may be through residual power or some other powers or on the basis of other provisions. This Bill was circulated to the States for consultation in 2016.

The states had forwarded their written views in this regard. A meeting of 37th

National Committee on Dam Safety was also held. Representatives of almost all the states had discussed on this Bill. All the states expressed their concurrence on this Bill. Representatives of Tamil Nadu, who were present in the meeting also expressed their concurrence on various provisions of the Bill. There is a need to include a technical expert in the CWC, so that technical support should be provided to the state Committee. Today, we don't have an emergency action plan with regard to several dams. The Government of India has chalked out an emergency action plan for more than 180 major dams. Several dams were in dilapidated condition and we have formulated a scheme to the tune of Rs. 600 crore for Hirakund dam keeping in view the condition of several such dams. We have undertaken the repair work of their gates. The work is in progress to replace all the gates of Farakka Barrage. Almost 80 per cent of its gates have been replaced and the remaining gates will be replaced shortly. Our aim is to protect the dams. Provisions have been made in the law with regard to proper safety of dams, so that the country can prosperous. Polavaram dam is declared as a national project. There is talk about the reimbursement of funds spent by the Government of India on Polavaram dam. An audited accounts for Rs. 3000 crore has just been presented and rest are remaining. It is the responsibility of the State Government to construct Polvaram project. Only yesterday, State Government cancelled the tender of a concessionaire. National Committee on Dam Safety is a technical body. It is not a regulatory authority. States will decide about their representatives. While framing the rules, we will certainly make provisions for a separate category of major states which have more dams so that they don't have to wait for years.

The Bill was passed.

THE AIRPORTS ECONOMIC REGULATORY AUTHORITY OF INDIA

(AMENDMENT) BILL, 2019

(As passed by the Rajya Sabha)

THE MINISTER OF STATE OF THE MINISTRY OF HOUSING

AND URBAN AFFAIRS; MINISTER OF STATE OF THE MINISTRY OF

CIVIL AVIATION AND MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF

COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY (SHRI HARDEEP SINGH PURI) moving the motion for consideration of the Bill, said: The need for a regulator in the aviation sector was first felt when the airports sector was opened up to the private players in the year 2006. The privatization of airports which was undertaken in 2006 through the privatization of Delhi and Mumbai airports today constitutes 34 per cent of all traffic, whereas the six airports that we have under consideration for privatization account for only six per cent. This piece of legislation was introduced in 2008 and it has served its purpose. In this legislation, a major airport was defined as one which had a passenger throughput of 1.5 million passengers per year. The first amendment that we are bringing is to substitute in the definition of a major airport the figure 1.5 million by 3.5 million. The second amendment is to insert a new subsection 1A in section 13 of the Act which says in case the bidding document for the bid for that airport itself provides for the amount of development fees, tariff or tariff structure which would not be determined by the authority. The situation is that out of the total number of airports 16 airports will be under AERA and the remaining airports will be excluded. Those airports, which will be excluded will not go to private players but those airports will be regulated by the Ministry of

Civil Aviation.

DR. K. JAYAKUMAR initiating said: The amendment Bill has been sought with an objective to address the exponential growth in the civil aviation sector. The amendment also sought to accommodate the interests of the private partners in the infrastructure project development by incentivizing them through a market-oriented tariff determination model. The airports handling 3.5 million passengers per annum will be classified as major airports. Nowhere has the

Minister addressed or the Bill has mentioned what to do with the minor airports. I feel that there is a big change taking place that the authority is coming out of tariff fixing and it is just playing a supervisory role and it is left to the private party to fix the tariff. I am afraid that the quality of the service will go down. The Bill will lead to fuelling monopolistic aspirations of the private partners. The airlines are not going to take any increase in the cost of services. Ultimately, the passenger has to pay it. There is an attempt to reduce the role of regulation and the ambit of regulation. This Bill is silent on the monitoring mechanism. Rather, it seeks to promote competitiveness in exchange for profit maximization. This aspect should be taken care of. The intent of the Government does not align with bettering the services as it has made no suggestions to improve the performance. The new definition needs factual backing. I would like to point out one error which is there in the Bill. In the Statement of Objects and Reasons, an increase from 12 to 27 airports has been quoted, whereas in 2008, there were 16 airports that were recognized under AERA, 2008.

SHRIMATI SUPRIYA SADANAND SULE: The Government itself is saying that aviation is one of the fastest growing sectors in the country. I would like to ask the Government as to why the Government is removing some airports from the ambit of AERA. The Government should expand the regulator rather than making two separate regulators. Now AAI will work as an operator and the regulator as well. Aviation is a service industry and the past experiences have shown that the service always goes down in the absence of checks and balances as the regulator and the operator being the same. Regulator is meant to be an independent body but now the Government will become one. We are not against privatization. It is good as long as it is transparent and fair.

SHRI RAJIV PRATAP RUDY: It is a very small amendment in the

Section 13 of the original Act. Earlier AERA was empowered to regulate tariff and other charges for aeronautical services but through this amendment that has been changed. Now this will be decided by the tender process. Section 13 deals with various points like efficiency of the airport, quality and the services provided by the airport, cost of improving efficiency and concession offered by the

Government. These will not be removed rather these will be ensured on one to one basis during tender process. I am sure the Government will keep a check on the costing also. The Bill has increased the threshold for annual passenger traffic for major airports from 15 lakh to 35 lakh. It is also a positive sign that people have shown interest in making investment in aviation sector. The decision to privatize the airports was taken for the first time during the regime of Shri Atal Bihari ji.

With the privatization of airports at Delhi and Mumbai, the profit of Airport

Authority increased manifold. We have improved our ATC services. Air traffic controllers work under tremendous pressure. I request the Government to do justice with air traffic controllers. The Government should also make some provision for refund of ticket money in case of death of the person. The

Government has proposed extension of Patna airport. My submission is that it would be better if a new airport is established in the eastern side of Patna. The

Government should also reduce the tariff. It will facilitate our passengers.

SHRI BALLI DURGA PRASAD RAO: As per this Bill the airports handling 3.5 million passengers per annum will be classified as Major Airports. I request the Government to make it 2.5 million passengers per annum so that more airports could come under the control of AERA. Earlier AERA was regulating 30 airports but now it has come down from 30 to 13 airports. The remaining 17 airports will come under the Civil Aviation Ministry and the passengers can expect respite in charges here. It is unfair and unjust. I would like to know whether the

Government is going to award full-fledged status of an international airport to

Tirupati Airport. Now the Ministry of Civil Aviation is empowered to bid out private airport projects on the basis of pre-determined tariff. By doing this the powers of AERA have been cut down and it will become an advisory body only. I request the Government to empower this body in all respects be it financial ability or managerial ability or about taking decisions for improvement in services. There is wide variation in airport tariffs which is ultimately recovered from the passengers. The Government should look after the Public Sector Airlines for regulation of tariff. The Government has sanctioned green field airports in

Bhogapuram, Orvakal and Mangalagiri but no further development has taken place so far.

SHRI RAHUL RAMESH SHEWALE: The Bill aims at reducing the workload of the overburdened AERA. The Government must consider the fact that the aviation sector in India is a booming sector with an annual growth rate of 10-11 per cent. So, the Government must focus on ensuring that the AERA's capacity is increased and also ensure that all airports must be regulated by a tariff regulatory authority set up by the Government. I would request the Minister to increase the jurisdiction of AERA. Only the presence of an independent regulator keeping a watch on the revenue deriving practices of such operators would help to ensure that the interest of the common man is protected. I would like to suggest to the hon.

Minister to include the amount of cargo that is being transported through and stored in airports as a category in classifying major airports.

SHRIMATI NAVNEET RAVI RANA: Today we are discussing the issue of privatization of airports. But one thing must be ensured that whenever we privatize any airport, the workers working at the airports and in the airlines should not face any difficulty. If it is not ensured, many people would become jobless. I welcome the UDAN scheme introduced by the Government. A few days back the Chief Minister of Maharashtra has inaugurated the Belore Airport at Amravati.

The Maharashtra Government has also said that this airport would be included in the UDAN scheme. I would like to urge upon the Central Government to sanction an amount of Rs. 101 crore for the construction of this airport. If fund is provided early for airport, its construction work would start soon.

SHRI ANUBHAV MOHANTY: In my State of Odisha, we have seen a massive increase in daily passenger count over the last few years, primarily due to growth of the State under the able leadership of hon. Chief Minister, Shri Naveen

Patnaik. Bhubaneswar itself is a smart city and Odisha constantly hosts national and international events. We understand the benefits this Bill brings in term of competitive tariffs through privatisation. The hon. Chief Minister of Odisha, Shri

Naveen Patnaik, has already made a request to the hon. Minister to introduce a flight between Bhubaneswar and Dubai as currently there is no flight connecting

Odisha with the Middle Eastern countries. Lastly, keeping in mind the tremendous potential for growth in this sector of my home State of Odisha, I request the

Government to consider measures for increasing the number of both domestic and international airports in Odisha as this will be a great boon for my people and for the nation.

KUNWAR DANISH ALI: The joint forum of the Airport Authority of

India employees has written a letter to the Ministry of Civil Aviation. Through this letter they have cautioned the Government that common people would suffer a lot following the handing over of profit making airports to private agencies. The

Airport Authority of India has set up 125 airports across the country out of them 85 are running in losses. Lack of adequate traffic there is attributed to the losses. The previous Government sold out airports one after the another. The present

Government has started wholesale selling out airports. It has been recently reported that the Government has decided to sell out six airports to a single industrial house. The results of handing over the most profit making airports of

Delhi and Mumbai are well known. Its repercussions have been extensively and clearly written in the reports of the CAG and the Public Accounts Committee. The

94th report of the PAC has mentioned the scams committed in the Airport of Delhi.

The Public exchequer is a hard earned money of the common people. Nobody should be allowed to misuse the fund. I would like to ask the Government whether it has chalked out any policy to prevent the recurrence of events like selling out profit making Delhi and Mumbai airports.

SHRI P. R. NATARAJAN: The AERA Bill is nothing but another effort of wholesale selling of aviation sector to the corporate sector. The present Bill is going to increase the threshold of annual passenger traffic for major airports to over 35 lakhs. All other airports in India are going to be in the private hands of our country. Five other airports have been sold to Adani Group. Neither AAI nor the Civil Aviation Ministry conducted any detailed feasibility study before floating the tender. The Government needs to take a leaf out of global experience, where most Airports are in public hands. Then in India, why is the rush for privatization of Airports?

SHRI SUSHIL KUMAR SINGH: Air travel would become cheaper and convenient through the provisions made in this Bill. The threshold limit for the major airport has been increased from 15 lakh passenger traffic to 35 lakh passenger traffic, which is a welcome step. There is an airport at Patna in Bihar.

Patna Airport is among some such airports which have been categorized as dangerous airports. It has been categorized as dangerous one due to its short length of runway. Alternative should be identified for this airport and the Government has also made efforts for it. I would like to know from the Hon. Minister by when domestic flights from Bihta airport would start, for which agreement has been reached. Gaya is an international airport. People come here for tourism and pilgrimage. Only one flight AI 433 was operational from this airport, which has been cancelled for the last two months. It should be started again.

Cargo service should also be introduced from this airport.

PROF. S.P. SINGH BAGHEL: I belong to the city of Agra which is one of the worst destinations in the world in terms of air connectivity. If a person from any corner of the world visits India, his first priority is to visit the Taj Mahal. In the year 1972, a flight was scheduled to operate from Delhi to Kathmandu via Agra and Khajuraho and after 47 years, the same flight is scheduled twice in a week.

People of the whole city of Agra are also upset because of this. More than ten thousand students of the city study in Bangaluru and Kota. I want that an airport in

Kota should be constructed and there should be a flight between Agra and Kota.

There should be connectivity between Agra and Ranchi and the services should be extended to , Mumbai, Jodhpur, Udaipur and Bodhgaya. All the tourists who visit Baudhgaya also visit Agra. At present, all services for air passengers are available at Civil Air Terminal Kheriya, Agra but the said airport is situated in the mid of Airforce area and because of this, it is not accessible to common man.

Therefore, it is urgently needed to construct a suitable passage to present civil airport so that common man could get easy access and air travelers would not face any difficulties in reaching the terminal building. A dedicated road should be constructed from Arjun Nagar Air Force gate to the terminal for this purpose.

Airport Authority of India has floated a tender worth Rs. 350 crore for construction of terminal building, apron, taxi track etc but the work is awaiting environment clearance from Department of Forests and TTZ. One flight from Agra to

Bangaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai and Amritsar should be scheduled from

Agra on daily basis. SHRI C.P. JOSHI: I support this Bill. Udaipur airport is situated in my

Parliamentary Constituency and several new flights are being operated from this airport during last five years. I would like to talk about flight from Jaipur to

Udaipur and Delhi to Udaipur. It had been declared to upgrade the said airport into international airport during the previous Government. Udaipur is world wedding destination, so it should be upgraded into international airport and new flights should be started to connect other cities of the country with Udaipur.

SHRI HARDEEP SINGH PURI replying said: Some very interesting things have been said. I entirely agree that adequate attention should be paid to the smaller airports. In fact, today, the Ministry of Civil Aviation is deciding and approving the tariffs of all minor airports. I want to assure that performance standards will not be compromised. Maintenance of standards will also be part of the bid document for future things which were included in the process. The issue is not only that the programme of privatisation is ultimately traceable to that period. minor airports will all continue even after the amendment. There is a lot of misinformation which is being generated. I think, some of it is due to genuine lack of understanding of what this Bill says. Five airports are already major airports, for which the tariffs have already been determined by AERA. I want to utilise this opportunity to say that two of those airports which were privatised in the year

2006, account for 34 per cent of the total air traffic. In 2005-06, prior to the privatisation of the Delhi and Mumbai airports, the share that Airports Authority of

India derived from the revenue of those airports was Rs. 669.94 crore. As a result of the decision which was taken in 2006 or 2007 or in 2008, today the revenue is

Rs. 1591.25 crore and it is more than two and half times. In 2005-06, Rs. 665.47 crore was the revenue of the Airports Authority. That has gone up to Rs. 1438 core. I can say that the present airport expansion for a passenger traffic of eight million per annum at a cost of Rs. 1200 crore is in progress. The Bihta airport has been approved for joint use with the Indian Air Force for 10 million passenger capacity. The Ministry of Civil Aviation will continue to perform its role. Overall the air fares are coming down; they are not increasing. Now all the airlines have to provide on their websites information about the range of fare. AERA already determines the cargo tariff charges. This is Bill to deal with the Airports Authority which is running the airport and the commercial operations of the airports. A suggestion was made with regard to the Delhi Airport. Till date 62 acres have been so developed for commercial lines. The operation of services for Kota is now the highest priority because several hon. Members have requested me to ensure that we accord it a priority. Indigo will start air services from Agra - Varanasi, Agra -

Bengaluru, Agra -Bhopal, Agra - Lucknow, in December. SpiceJet with run air services from Agra to Delhi; will run air services from Agra to Jaipur.

This was started in 2017. Air services from Agra to Mumbai has been allocated to Jet Airways and now it will go for re-bidding. I thank the hon. Members for their participation in the debate.

The Bill was passed.

SNEHLATA SHRIVASTAVA Secretary General

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