Water courses and water in water courses to be Government property

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in any other law for the time being in force, or in any custom or usage or in any contract or other instrument but subject to the provisions of section 218 of the Kerala Panchayat Raj Act, 1994 (13 of 1994) and section 208 of the Kerala Municipality Act, 1994 (20 of 1994), all water courses and all water in such water courses in the State shall be the property of the Government, and the Government shall be entitled to conserve and regulate the use of such watercourses and the water in all those water courses for the purposes of irrigation and the generation of Electricity and for matters connected therewith or for both.