18
FIRST PROPOSAL ON CENTRAL IRRIGATION AND WATERWAYS ADVISORY BOARD
“The Labour Department formed an opinion that it would be preferable to create a Central Irrigation and Waterways Advisory Board. We want a Board constantly in being and having the necessary authority. Our idea of this Board could be that it should be composed as follows :
Chairman:— Waterways and Irrigation Commissioner to the Government of India. This officer would have to have experience of India and should therefore be a senior officer of the Indian Service of Engineers. He would have required knowledge both of waterways and irrigation, but the strength of the Board as an advisory body would be the collective strength of the Board and not the individual strength of the Chairman. (He would, however, in his individual capacity supervise the working of the Indian Waterways Research Institution.)
Members:— There would be 3 permanent members: 1. Waterways member 2. Irrigation member 3. Hydro-Electric member.
There would also be part-time members—e.g. the Chief Engineers of any Provinces when any matter concerning the Provinces was under consideration, the Agricultural Advisor to the Government of India when any agricultural matters were under consideration. Power would also be given to co-opt members for particular matters.
Note : This constitution leaves the Board without a member for gravity irrigation but it is probable that the Chairman would always have this knowledge.
The responsibilities of the Central Irrigation and Waterways Board would be :
- A general responsibility for initiating, co-ordinating and pressing forward schemes of river and waterways control with a view to