Cauvery River dispute: K'taka govt files affidavit in SC opposing TN’s plea

NEW DELHI: The Karnataka government on Thursday filed an affidavit before the Supreme Court in the Cauvery water-sharing dispute opposing Tamil Nadu’s application for the release of 24,000 cusecs of water daily per day from the reservoirs in Karnataka.

Karnataka government said that Tamil Nadu’s application is based on an assumption that this year is the normal rainwater year.

The government said that Tamil Nadu’s application that Karnataka to ensure the release of 36.76 TMC (thousand million cubic feet) stipulated for September 2023 has no legal basis since the said quantity is stipulated in a normal water year and this water year, being a distressed water year so far, it is not applicable. The application is based on an “erroneous assumption” that this year is the normal rainwater year, even though, rainfall is lesser by 25 per cent and inflow into four reservoirs in Karnataka was lesser by 42.5 per cent upto August 9 as recorded by the Cauvery Water Management Authority, Karnataka government stated in its affidavit.

“During this water year, the southwest monsoon has largely failed so far. Due to the failure of the southwest monsoon, the distress condition has arisen in the Cauvery basin in Karnataka. Karnataka, therefore is not obliged to and it cannot be compiled to ensure water as per the stipulated releases prescribed for the normal year,” it added.

The apex court is scheduled to hear on August 25 the application of the Tamil Nadu government where it has sought direction to Karnataka to release 24,000 cusecs of water daily for standing crops. A bench of Justices BR Gavai, PS Narasimha, and Prashant Kumar Mishra will hear the application.

The matter has been a controversial issue between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu for decades and they have been locked in battle over the sharing of water from the Cauvery river, which is a major source of irrigation and drinking water for millions of people in the region.

The Centre formed the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal (CWDT) on June 2, 1990, to adjudicate disputes between Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, and Puducherry with respect to the water-sharing capacities.

In its affidavit, the Karnataka government said that the urgency pleaded by Tamil Nadu on the grounds of saving standing crops is wholly misreading because the permissible area of the Kuruvai rice crop which started on June 12 and goes up to end of September requires 32.27 tmc as estimated by the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal which has not been modified by the Supreme Court in its Judgment in 2018.

“If 32.27 TMC is the total requirement for the Kuruvai rice crop which goes upto end of September; the water requirement upto August 23 was 22.44 TMC and in the remaining period of the season from August 18 to the end of September is about 9.83 tmc (32.27 = 22.44 + 9.83 TMC). Tamil Nadu says it has started sowing Samba rice crops from July 15 onwards. If so, it is still at the transplantation stage,” the affidavit stated.

Tamil Nadu in its fresh application sought direction to the State of Karnataka to immediately release 24,000 cubic feet per second (cusecs) from its reservoirs and ensure the availability of the specified quantity of water at Biligundlu on the inter-state border for the remainder of the month for meeting the pressing demands of the standing crops.

It also urged the top court to direct Karnataka to ensure the release of 36.76 TMC (thousand million cubic feet) stipulated for September 2023 as per the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal (CWDT)’s final award of February 2007 that was modified by the Supreme Court in 2018. Tamil Nadu said Karnataka should make good the shortfall of 28.849 TMC water during the current irrigation year for the period between June 1 to July 31.

It further asked the apex court to direct the Cauvery Water Management Authority to ensure that the directions issued to Karnataka to release water to Tamil Nadu were “fully implemented and the stipulated monthly releases during the remaining period of the current water year are fully given effect to by the State of Karnataka”.

The application said that a direction was given to Karnataka on August 10 to release from its reservoirs 15,000 cusecs at Billigundulu on August 11 for 15 days.

“Unfortunately, even this quantum of water was arbitrarily reduced to 10,000 cusecs by the CWMA in its 22nd meeting held on August 11 at the instance of Karnataka. Regretfully, even this amount of 10,000 cusecs to be ensured at Billigundulu by releasing such quantum of water from the KRS and Kabini reservoirs has not been complied with by Karnataka,” it added.

Karnataka failed to fully implement the directions for the release of the stipulated quantum of 10,000 cusecs (0.864 TMC per day) as directed by CWRC, it said. Karnataka is duty-bound to release the Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu as per the final order passed by the Tribunal as modified by this Court, application stated.