Bengaluru water crisis: Amid the water crisis in Bengaluru, Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar emphasised on Monday that releasing Cauvery river water to Tamil Nadu is out of the question and will not happen under any circumstances.
In response to criticism and protests against the government amid allegations of releasing Cauvery water from Krishnaraja Sagar (KRS) dam to Tamil Nadu, he clarified that the discharge was intended for Bengaluru and not for the neighboring state.
"There is no question of releasing Cauvery river water to Tamil Nadu now at any cost, we have not left (released)....How much water flows to Tamil Nadu, there is an account for it. Even if water is released today it will take four days to reach there," Shivakumar, who is also the water resources minister, told reporters.
"We are not fools in this government to release water (to Tamil Nadu)," added Shivakumar, also the State Congress chief.
'Hasn't seen such a severe drought in 3-4 decades'
Shivakumar further said that the State had not witnessed such a severe drought in the past three-four decades, and the next two months are "very much important."
He stated that the administration is exerting all efforts to handle the crisis and ensure water supply to the citizens, further mentioning that measures have been implemented to curb the activities of water "mafia" in the city. "In the last 30-40 years we had not seen such drought; though there was drought earlier we had never declared such a large number of taluks as drought-affected," Shivakumar told reporters.
Karnataka has declared drought in 223 out of 240 taluks, out of which 196 are categorised as severely drought affected.
Shivakumar, also in-charge of Bengaluru development, said wherever Cauvery river water has to be supplied in the city, it is being done, but out of 13,900-odd borewells in Bengaluru, about 6,900 have become defunct. "So to control the situation, we have arranged for tankers to supply water. Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) and Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) are making all efforts in this regard," he added.
Legal action against drilling
The Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) has said it will take legal action against those drilling unauthorised borewells within the city limits.
From March 15 onwards, individuals can apply for permission to drill borewells by submitting their applications on the official website of the Board. Approval will be granted following a site inspection by the relevant officials, it stated.
According to an order issued by the BWSSB, it is mandatory to obtain permission from the relevant authorities before drilling borewells for personal or other purposes in Bengaluru city, as per Section 11 of the Karnataka Ground Water (Regulation and Control of Development and Management) Act, 2011.
The BWSSB cited insufficient rainfall as a contributing factor to the decline in groundwater levels and noted that many borewells in the city have dried up as a result. Officials also suspect that ground water level in the city is also decreasing due to "unscientific drilling" of borewells.
(With PTI inputs)
