Cauvery dispute: CM Stalin flays Karnataka govt over water release limit, calls for all-party meet on July 16
On Sunday, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah said they were ready to release 8,000 cusecs of water from the Cauvery river every day to Tamil Nadu instead of the one TMC ft till the end of this month, as directed by the CWRC.
Chief Minister MK Stalin; Cauvery Water
CHENNAI: Chief Minister MK Stalin on Monday flayed the Congress-led Karnataka government for violating the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA)'s order directing the release 1 thousand million cubic feet (tmc) of Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu.
He further directed the State Minister for Water Resources, Duraimurugan, to convene a meeting of legislative party leaders at 11 am on July 16 (tomorrow) at the Namakkal Kavignar Maligai in the State Secretariat building, to decide on the next course of action in the inter-state river dispute.
At the meeting, consultations will be held on Karnataka's offer to release 8,000 cusecs of Cauvery water daily to Tamil Nadu instead of the 1 TMC water per day, as ordered by the CWMA.
"It is very shocking that the Karnataka government has said that it is not possible to release the water that should be released to Tamil Nadu as per the CWMA and Cauvery Water Regulation Committee (CWRC) orders. The Government of Tamil Nadu has written to the CWMA to implement its order immediately," CM Stalin said in a statement.
As on July 15, 2024, while the total storage in the four main dams of Karnataka is 75.586 TMC ft, the water level in Tamil Nadu's Mettur reservoir is a mere 13.808 TMC ft, he noted.
Moreover, as per the IMD's forecast, there is scope for adequate rainfall. Hence, Karnataka declining to release water according to the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee's (CWRC) directive is a betrayal of Tamil Nadu's farmers, Stalin said, adding that "we will never accept such actions which may affect the welfare of the farmers of Tamil Nadu."
After the meeting with floor leaders of parties represented in the state Assembly, all necessary legal steps will be taken, the CM further stated.
On Sunday, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had said the state government was ready to release 8,000 cusecs of water from the Cauvery river every day to Tamil Nadu instead of the one TMC ft till the end of this month, as directed by the CWRC.
(With PTI inputs)