Bhubaneswar: The Mahanadi Bachao Andolan outfit on Tuesday launched a campaign from Lingaraj Temple to save the river.

The activists will move to Chhattisgarh and organise a protest rally from Kalma in the neighbouring state to Puri on April 11. The rally will reach Puri on April 15.

Cutting across party lines, political leaders have expressed their solidarity to the agitation. Joining the Mahanadi Bacchao Andolna, BJD vice-president Debi Prasad Mishra said: "The Chhattisgarh government should immediately close all gates of Kalma reservoir. The flow of water has almost stopped in downstream Mahanadi."

Senior BJP leader Bijoy Mohapatra said: "The terms of reference of the tribunal should be immediately notified. The tribunal should start its function immediately. It seems the delay is being done keeping the interests of Chhattisgarh in consideration. Odisha is going to face acute shortage of water in the coming days."

Former Pradesh Congress Committee president Niranjan Patnaik also accused the Centre of sidestepping the interests of the state.

Accusing the Centre of neglecting the state's interests on the Mahandi water dispute, leader of Opposition Narasingha Mishra said: "It seems the Centre is protecting the interests of Chhattisgarh. What is more unfortunate that the state Assembly has constituted two committees on the Mahandi water dispute. While one committee is constituted under the chief minister, another is one headed by the Speaker. But not a single meeting of these committees has been convened so far."

Convenor of Mahanadi Bachao Andolan Sudarsan Das said: "We will collect one lakh signatures on a memorandum addressed to Chief Justice of India Deepak Mishra."

The BJD is planning to organise a symposium on April 15 on the Mahanadi water row issue.