NILGIRIS: The Nilgiris Documentation Centre (NDC) has appealed to Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay to convene a meeting of the three southern states to find a lasting solution to the Cauvery water dispute and other water-related issues.
According to NDC honorary director D Venugopal, "The three states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka are bound together by nature and share a common antiquity, interlinked by history, culture and economic development. Until the states' reorganisation in 1956, they were part of the Madras Presidency. The three states benefit from both the southwest and northeast monsoons and encompass a major portion of the Western Ghats, which give rise to most of South India's rivers. These water resources are sufficient to meet the needs of much of the country."
"Sir Arthur Cotton, the legendary British dam builder, wrote, 'There is no country in the world where the reasons causing a drought are so few and where the means of overcoming such conditions are so extensively within the power of the government as in the Madras territories.' John Sullivan, the founder of modern Nilgiris and then member of the Governor's Council in charge of irrigation, said, 'So long as one drop of water is allowed to run waste into the sea, we must take the blame upon ourselves for not making our best efforts to prevent the evils of scarcity and famine.'," he said.
"The CM should immediately take the initiative to convene a tri-state meeting to explore all possibilities for a lasting solution to the water issues of the three states through mutual cooperation and shared benefits. Advances in science, technology and global cooperation have opened up immense possibilities in irrigation and water management. The water requirements of these fast-developing states, which together account for nearly one-fifth of the country's GDP, are bound to increase manifold in the future. At the same time, emerging threats such as climate change and El Niño could pose significant challenges," he added.
"Ooty, where the three states meet, would be an ideal venue for such a meeting. The first meeting on sharing Cauvery waters was held in Ooty in 1890, followed by two more meetings in 1922 and 1929," Venugopal noted.
