Largely ignored by the English language print and electronic media, Prof. Saifuddin Soz announced before media persons on February 27, 2009 that the programme of inter-linking of rivers was very much ?on the front burner and priority list ?of his Ministry and five links would be completed by the next two or three years?. That this was a part of the ?poll waves? was stressed by The Tribune, the only English language newspaper published from Delhi to report the Minister'sstatement in its February 28 issue. In its report it said that the ?UPA government has had a poll time recall regarding the country'sambitious interlinking of rivers (ILR) programme?. At present, according to this newspaper, there are five river links on board the ILR programme. He told journalists that the DPR of the Ken?Betwa link was completed on December 31, 2008. Besides, water being a State subject, and in four of these five projects, two state governments each were involved. ?But we are confident that all the five links will be ready in the next two or three years?, Prof Soz added. However, if the project was really on the ?front burner and the priority list? what prevented him from making this announcement in answer to a Rajya Sabha question on February 24, just three days before he told the media about the project? On that day (February 24), in reply to a question by a BJP member on the inter-linking project, he said: ?As per the National Common Minimum Programme of the government on the inter-linking of rivers programme is being pursued with focus on peninsular component and five peninsular links having been identified as priority links for consensus building between the states concerned.
