Tamil Nadu to move Supreme Court as Karnataka refuses to share Cauvery water

Tamil Nadu government to move Supreme Court over Karnataka's refusal to share Cauvery water. The TN CM wrote to Union Minister of Jal Shakti requesting to ensure TN's share of water, but forums failed to act. Karnataka said it would release only 8,000 cusecs on August 22.

The Tamil Nadu government on August 11 said it would move the Supreme Court over its due share of Cauvery water from Karnataka, as the neighbouring State has refused to share the water with Tamil Nadu during a meeting of the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) in New Delhi.

“There is no other option but to move the Supreme Court,” Minister for Water Resources Duraimurugan said.

“There is no situation in Karnataka that it has no water. Karnataka does not have the intention to share the water with Tamil Nadu. Those who are aware of the Cauvery’s history know that this is not a recent trend. It is unfortunate that Karnataka has been maintaining this stand since the beginning.”

Though it was unanimously decided during a meeting of the Cauvery Water Regulatory Committee on August 10 to release 15,000 cusecs of water to Tamil Nadu, Karnataka revised its stand during the meeting of CWMA in New Delhi on August 11, Mr. Duraimurugan pointed out. Karnataka said that it would release only 8,000 cusecs of water that too on August 22.

Mr. Duraimurugan recalled the representations to these two forums requesting to ensure the share of Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu and Chief Minister M.K. Stalin’s letter to Union Minister of Jal Shakti reiterating the same and further charged: “But, it is unfortunate that these two forums have not come forward to discharge their functions promptly.”