Cauvery row: After shutdown call across 8 districts, traders down shutters in Nagapattinam

NAGAPATTINAM: Amid the protests and dispute around the sharing of Cauvery water with neighbouring Karnataka, traders in DMK-ruled Tamil Nadu downed shutters of about 12,000 shops and commercial establishments in the Nagapattinam district on Wednesday morning.

As part of a joint campaign, the Cauvery Delta Protection Movement and the farmers' union called for a shutdown in the delta districts on Wednesday, demanding the intervention of the Centre to ensure that the Karnataka government release adequate water from the Cauvery to save Kuruvai paddy and begin Samba cultivation.

The joint protest was launched across 8 districts of Tamil Nadu, including Trichy, Tanjore, Nagapattinam and Tiruvarur, on Wednesday morning and will continue till October 12, Thursday.

While all commercial establishments will remain closed as part of the shutdown, only those for meeting the daily needs of the people will stay open in these districts.

The Tamil Nadu Assembly, on Monday, adopted a resolution urging the Union government to direct Karnataka to release Cauvery water as per the orders of the Cauvery Water Management Authority. The resolution was passed unanimously.

The Cauvery Water Regulation Committee ordered Karnataka to ensure the release of 3,000 cusecs of Cauvery water at Biligundlu between September 28 and October 15.

Earlier, the Karnataka government had refused to comply with the orders of the Cauvery board to share the waters with Tamil Nadu, citing severe drought in parts of the state.

Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar on October 5 said cumulative inflows into the reservoirs in the state's Cauvery basin were decreasing.

Amid the war of words and politics around the Cauvery issue, farmers in both states have launched protests.

The governments of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu have been locked in a protracted tussle over the sharing of Cauvery waters.

The river is seen as a major source of sustenance for the people in the two states. Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had earlier voiced his disappointment over the recommendation of the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee (CWRC) to release 3,000 cusecs of Cauvery water at Biligundlu between September 28 and October 15.

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 their individual water-sharing capacities.