Water resources minister Vijay Kumar Choudhary on Thursday opposed the Centre’s proposed National Water Policy 2012, saying that the Union government cannot formulate such a policy as doing so would amount to infringement on the state’s rights on its water resources.

Choudhary, accompanied by his department’s principal secretary Arun Kumar Singh, during a news meet on Thursday, said the Centre’s move is not only unconstitutional but also an attack on the federal structure of the country as the Constitution has clearly demarcated the powers between states and the Union.

“According to the Constitution, water is in the state list which means that state governments have the right to make laws to regulate and control the use of water and not the Centre,” Choudhary said. He added: “Why is the Centre making a policy on water alone? Why not on other natural resources?”

He said the Bihar government — along with Punjab, Kerala, Haryana and other states — had objected to water being termed as national resource at the National Water Resource Council meet in December last year. Questioning the Centre’s claim that water should have fair and equal distribution, Choudhary said: “If this is the case, why not have a uniform national policy on mines, minerals, ports, fisheries, coastal areas, gold, diamond and other resources, which are available in abundance in many states?”

Expressing its displeasure over the Centre’s decision to create a framework to regulate the distribution of water, Choudhary said the state government would not accept it.

He said the Centre, which had assured Bihar that its concerns would be redressed, has sent the proceedings. Asked whether or not the proceedings have incorporated Bihar’s concerns, he said: “I have not gone through the proceedings but one thing is certain that we will oppose it tooth and nail if our concerns are not addressed.”

Choudhary also said siltation is the major reason for change in the course of rivers and said it was essential to have a silt management policy.

On steps taken by his department to prevent breach in important embankments on major rivers in the past two years, he said: “Our engineers have laid emphasis on rivers having a centralised flow so that it may not meander and put any pressure on embankments.”