BJP workers marched towards Goa International Airport at Dabolim on Thursday evening to protest the alleged diversion of Mhadei river water, shortly before Karnataka chief minister D K Shivakumar was scheduled to arrive in Goa for the Goy Rakhonn Yatra at Birla, Zuarinagar.
The protesters said the diversion could affect Goa’s water security, local ecosystems and regional agricultural activity. The demonstration took place ahead of Shivakumar’s arrival, turning the airport approach into the immediate site of a renewed political and public dispute over the river’s use.
Superintendent of Police Gurudas Kadam directed the police to prevent the protesters from coming in the way of the Karnataka chief minister’s convoy, according to the report. The police intervention was aimed at keeping the protest away from the route expected to be used by Shivakumar’s convoy.
Mayur Dessai, identified as a protester, said the demonstration was peaceful and was intended to communicate Goa’s concerns directly to the Karnataka chief minister. “Ours was a peaceful protest to show the Karnataka CM that the diversion of Mhadei will affect Goa’s water security, local ecosystems, and regional agriculture activities,” he said.
Dessai said the protesters did not want to disrupt the convoy but wanted to underline the dependence of communities on the Mhadei river. “Our lives are dependent on Mhadei and Karnataka should stop diverting the Mhadei river,” he said, according to the report.
The protest brings the river dispute into a setting where public access, security arrangements and inter-state politics intersect. The airport march was not reported as an attempt to block the chief minister’s convoy; rather, the protester’s account described it as a public demonstration intended to register Goa’s opposition to diversion plans.
The immediate dispute is centred on how water from the Mhadei river is managed and what its diversion could mean for areas in Goa. The protesters’ objections focused on three linked concerns: the security of water supplies, the condition of local ecosystems and the effects on agriculture. The report did not provide details of any new diversion order, project milestone or official response from the Karnataka government during the visit.
The police action described in the report establishes the administrative priority at the airport: preventing the demonstration from affecting the visiting chief minister’s movement while allowing security arrangements around the arrival to proceed. It does not indicate whether protesters were detained or whether any case was registered.
Shivakumar was expected to attend the Goy Rakhonn Yatra at Birla in Zuarinagar. The report did not state whether he addressed the protesters’ demands during his visit or whether a meeting took place between the Karnataka chief minister and representatives of the demonstrators. Further official statements from the state governments would determine whether the airport protest leads to any formal response on the Mhadei issue.
