BENGALURU: The Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA), at its 52nd meeting held on Tuesday in Delhi, reviewed the water storage, inflow, outflow and rainfall situation in the states in the river basin and decided to reassess the situation in its next meeting in view of the expected improvement in monsoon rains.
During the meeting, Tamil Nadu pressed for the formulation of a distress-sharing formula and insisted on the release of its share of 9 TMC of water. The state also urged the CWMA to direct Karnataka to furnish details of minor irrigation tank-filling schemes and lift-irrigation projects drawing water directly from rivers and canals.
It also demanded that water supplied to Bengaluru city from the Cauvery basin be treated as 100 per cent utilisation by Karnataka and accounted for in yield calculations.
Karnataka informed the CWMA that delayed monsoon rains and poor inflows have led to lower storage levels and reduced outflows from reservoirs.
The state also pointed out that northern Karnataka and parts of Maharashtra were facing similar conditions because of the impact of El Niño. Taking note of the prevailing situation, the CWMA directed all states in the Cauvery basin to make judicious use of available water, particularly for drinking purposes and decided to review the matter at its next meeting.