The Ken-Betwa Link Project, India's first inter-river linking initiative under the National Perspective Plan, has entered active construction. It transfers surplus water from the Ken river in Madhya Pradesh to the water-scarce Betwa basin, benefiting both Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. The project includes the Daudhan Dam, a 221-km link canal, and hydropower generation capacity of 103 MW. It aims to irrigate 10.62 lakh hectares and provide drinking water to about 62 lakh people across Bundelkhand.

The Ken-Betwa Link Project (KBLP) is the flagship implementation of India's National River Linking Project (NRLP), conceived under the National Water Development Agency (NWDA). The NRLP envisions 30 river links — 16 peninsular and 14 Himalayan — to transfer water from surplus basins to deficit ones.

Both Ken and Betwa are tributaries of the Yamuna River. The Ken originates in Madhya Pradesh's Jabalpur district and flows northward before joining the Yamuna near Chilla in Uttar Pradesh. The Betwa originates near Bhopal and also joins the Yamuna at Hamirpur (UP). The Bundelkhand region, straddling MP and UP, suffers chronic drought and agrarian distress, making this link hydrologically and politically significant.

The Daudhan Dam, the project's centrepiece, is located in Panna district of Madhya Pradesh and sits adjacent to the Panna Tiger Reserve — a key environmental controversy that delayed the project for years. The Supreme Court granted conditional forest clearance in 2023.

The project cost is approximately ₹44,605 crore (as revised), with the Centre funding 90% and the two states contributing 5% each. The National Ken-Betwa Link Project Authority (NKBLA) was constituted to oversee implementation. The MoU between MP and UP was signed in 2021 under the Union Jal Shakti Ministry. This project is a template for future river-linking efforts and tests the examiner's grip on basin geography, inter-state water sharing, and India's water governance architecture.