The Tamil Nadu government has gotten pretty upset with Karnataka’s choice to cut down on Cauvery River water releases. They’ve decided to have a big meeting with all parties to talk about it. The meeting’s gonna happen at 11 in the morning on Tuesday at the State Secretariat. Water Resources Minister Duraimurugan will be in charge.
The controversy stems from Karnataka’s recent decision to release only 8,000 cusecs of water to Tamil Nadu, falling short of the requested one thousand million cubic metres. This decision was made during an all-party meeting held on July 14 at Vidhana Soudha in Bengaluru, where various political leaders gathered to discuss the directives of the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee (CWRC).
Key figures at the meeting were Karnataka’s top boss Siddaramaiah, his second-in-command DK Shivakumar, BJP guy CT Ravi, and other big shots from the state. Following the meeting, CM Siddaramaiah explained the rationale behind the decision: “Today an all-party meeting took place in which Deputy CM DK Shivakumar, BJP leaders, and Mysuru basin leaders were present. They opined that we should not release water and appeal before CWMA. Mohan Katarki, a member of the legal team, suggested that considering the present situation, we can release 8,000 cusecs of water and if rain comes, we will increase the number. This decision has been taken in the meeting.”
At a press conference, CM Siddaramaiah clarified the collective stance: “The collective opinion is that we can’t leave 1 TMC of water in Tamil Nadu every day. Second is that we have to appeal before the court as we can’t leave 1 TMC water and we have decided to leave 8,000 cusecs every day to Tamil Nadu.”
The issue of water sharing has been a longstanding source of tension between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, with the Cauvery River being a crucial lifeline for both states. The latest decision has added fuel to the fire, particularly in light of the severe water crisis faced by Karnataka earlier this year. On February 10, people who work for the government checked and found out that 7,082 villages all over Karnataka, including 1,193 areas in Bengaluru Urban District, might not have enough drinking water. They also said that Tumakuru district and Uttara Kannada were places where water was hard to find.
The Tamil Nadu government thinks Karnataka’s choice breaks cooperative federalism and an affront to their state’s agricultural and drinking water needs. Tamil Nadu called an all-party meeting to create a united front and strategize on the next steps, including potential legal recourse and diplomatic efforts to ensure fair water distribution.
This fight shows how important it is to manage water well and for states to work together. Both Karnataka and Tamil Nadu are still trying to deal with not having enough water and sharing natural resources in a way that’s fair to everyone.
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