Panaji (Goa) Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar today admitted that the sharing of River water with Karnataka and Maharashtra is “inevitable” as the river passes through all the three States (including Goa).

“One has to understand that 52 kms river flows through Goa, 35 kms through Karnataka and 16 kms through Maharashtra. In such situation, sharing of water of Rive Mhadei is inevitable as it is passing through all the three States,” Parrikar told reporters.

“The river flows through three states and so each state has some right over its water also. If someone things Karnataka will not get share out of tribunal judgment, I think he is living in fool’s paradise,” Chief Minister added.

“River which flows through Karnataka also, how can you deny water to them? But at the same time, Karnataka cannot take or divert water from Mhadei basin to other basin. They have to drink it or use it within that basin,” he said.

Chief Minister said that the current issue pending before the tribunal is whether the Mhadei basin is deficit or not. “Water in the Mhadei basin is of Mhadei river and as such there is reasonable share to all the three states,” he said.

“The river is negative on requirement and as such water cannot be taken from that river and taken to some other river,” he explained.