Within the next four weeks, the Supreme Court is slated to deliver its verdict on the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal’s award of 2007, which announced a formula for equitable sharing of the river water between Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Kerala. A three-judge Bench led by Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra committed itself to the timeframe while rejecting a petition from a powerful NGO—with Kiran Mazumdar Shaw and Mohandas Pai as members—that sought more Cauvery water for Bengaluru.
Karnataka could find itself between a rock and a hard place if the SC upholds the 2007 award. But if the court were to rework the award, there would be a new formula that could whip up emotions on both sides. With Karnataka going to polls within the next few months, compliance wouldn’t be easy. As it is, the SC’s interim directive last year to Karnataka to release 2,000 cusecs each day to Tamil Nadu went unhonoured, though in hearing after hearing the Bench parroted the order on water release.
So it came as little surprise when Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami’s recent request to his Karnataka counterpart Siddaramaiah, seeking the release of at least 15 tmcft water to save the standing samba crop was promptly rejected. As per the 2007 award, Tamil Nadu should get 192 tmcft in a year at the Biligundlu border. But as on January 9, only 111.647 tmcft had been realised against 179.871 tmcft.
Palaniswami went through the ritual of seeking Tamil Nadu’s fair share of water knowing full well Karnataka won’t yield, certainly not on an election year. He pointed out that the crop season in Karnataka was already over and the state had a gross storage of 49.82 tmcft in its four major reservoirs as compared to just 21.27 tmcft in Mettur dam. “There is enough of confusion in over two decades,” the Bench said while rejecting the NGO’s petition. One hopes it delivers a speaking order that is enforceable. Strict compliance alone will uphold the majesty of the judiciary.