The Inter-State Water Disputes Act, 1956 is an Act of the Parliament of India that establishes the legal mechanism for the adjudication of disputes concerning the use, distribution, and control of waters of inter-State rivers and river valleys. It was enacted in 1956 under the authority of Article 262 of the Constitution, which empowers Parliament to legislate on this matter and to exclude the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court and other courts. The Act was created to solve the problem of conflicts arising from shared river resources between states, particularly following the linguistic reorganization of states.
The mechanism under the Act begins when a state government requests the Central Government to refer a water dispute. If the Central Government is of the opinion that the dispute cannot be settled through negotiations, it is required to constitute an ad-hoc Water Disputes Tribunal for adjudication. The Tribunal's decision, known as an award, is final and binding on the parties and has the same force as an order of the Supreme Court. The Act is closely connected to the River Boards Act, 1956, which was also enacted under Article 262.
The Act has been subject to reform attempts, notably the Inter-State River Water Disputes (Amendment) Bill, 2019, which was passed by the Lok Sabha on July 31, 2019. This Bill proposed a significant change by replacing the system of multiple ad-hoc Tribunals with a single, permanent Inter-State River Water Disputes Tribunal with multiple benches. It also mandated the establishment of a Disputes Resolution Committee (DRC) to attempt an amicable settlement before the matter is referred to the Tribunal. Furthermore, the Bill proposed a strict timeline for the Tribunal to give its report and decision within two years, extendable by a maximum of one year.