NEW DELHI/MYSURU: The Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) on Tuesday directed Karnataka to release 9.19 tmcft of water to Tamil Nadu in June. Angry farmers in Cauvery basin have
urged the government not to release water, while the Karnataka government, treading cautiously, has decided to seek legal opinion.
“The committee has decided that Karnataka should release 9.19 tmcft of water to Tamil Nadu during June 2019 at the Billigundlu dam on the Karnataka-Tamil Nadu border,” CWMA chairman S Masood Hussain said after the meeting in New Delhi.
“It has been decided that in terms of the Supreme Court order (Feb 16, 2018) that water releases be made for the month of June 2019 to the extent of 9.19 tmcft as and when the appropriate inflows are received in the four reservoirs in Karnataka — KRS, Hemavathy, Kabini and Harangi,” according to a note issued after the meeting that was also attended by officers from Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Puducherry.
A senior officer from the Karnataka Water Resources Department said there is no cause for worry as the Authority has directed the state to release water depending on the inflow in the reservoirs.
However, for farmers in Mandya, who are waiting for pre-monsoon showers to save their standing crops, the Authority’s direction has come as a rude shock.
As the news of the Authority’s order spread, farmers in the Mandya-Mysuru region took to the streets.
The situation, they say, will turn grim if there is delay in the onset of monsoon.
Cauvery Hitharakshana Samithi chairman and former MP G Made Gowda said, “How can Karnataka release water? The delay in pre-monsoon showers has created panic among the farming community in the region.”
However, Raitha Sangha leader Nanjunde Gowda said there was no need to panic as the Authority directed the government to release water based on inflow into the reservoirs.
No discussion on Mekedatu
There was no discussion on Karnataka’s Detailed Project Report (DPR) for constructing a dam across Cauvery river at Mekedatu, according to CWMA officials.
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In the second meeting of the CWMA held on December 2, 2018, the Tamil Nadu government put forth a strong case and charged that Karnataka’s move to construct a reservoir for storing water to meet the drinking water needs of Bengaluru city, was a ploy to increase the storage capacity and enhance its irrigation.
Karnataka government, however, had clarified that it was only a drinking water project and not an irrigation scheme.
WATER NEEDS
Krishnaraja Sagar (KRS), Kabini, Hemavathi and Harangi reservoirs in Cauvery basin have 14 tmc ft water.
Irrigation Department needs around 4.84 tmcft of water for next one month to meet drinking water needs of Bengaluru and for standing crops.
Department needs another 2.08 tmcft of water to provide drinking water to Mysuru, Mandya, Chamarajnagar and other towns.