A day after the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee (CWRC) recommended Karnataka to release 3,000 cusecs of Cauvery river water to neighboring Tamil Nadu upto October 31, Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Thursday said Karnataka will appeal against the direction of CWRC once again.
The matter of release of water is expected to soon come up before the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA), which will issue an order based on the recommendation of the CWRC, its assisting body.
We will appeal against CWRC recommendation
"We have an inflow of 8,000-9,000 cusecs (in state's reservoirs), but still we will protect the interest of farmers. We will appeal against it (CWRC recommendation). We find it very difficult, as still there are no rains," Shivakumar, who is also in-charge of the state's Water Resources department, said.
Speaking to reporters in Bengaluru, he said, “There has been one or two spells of small amounts of rain in Bengaluru, but it has not reached Biligundlu yet. We will plan it, but we will appeal against it."
On load shedding
Responding to a question on load shedding resulting in power cuts in many parts of the state and trouble faced by farmers unable to operate their pump sets as a result, the Deputy CM said that due to the drought situation, there is a deficit of power in many parts of the state. "o address this issue, Energy Minister K J George met with Union Power Minister R K Singh and requested the supply of power from the central grid," he added.
"When I was the power minister (during earlier Congress govt), I added more than 12,000 MW of power, but when the BJP regime was there, they did not plan to add any power. Normally, there will be 10-15 per cent growth every year. They just sold the power, that's all. Now there is drought, almost 200 taluks are in drought and people are finding it very difficult," he said.
The Deputy Chief Minister emphasised that power generation requires a significant amount of water, and there are also challenges related to the availability of coal. "However, despite these challenges, the government is committed to supporting the farmers. Karnataka's Energy Minister has already held discussions with the Union Power Minister to secure power from the central grid. The state is facing a power deficit due to drought conditions, but efforts are being made to address this situation. The Deputy Chief Minister expressed hope for rain and requested everyone's prayers in this regard," he said.
Cauvery water dispute
The Cauvery water crisis has once again surfaced in Karnataka with the water tribunals ordering the state to release 3,000 cusecs of water to Tamil Nadu till October 16. With the release of water to Tamil Nadu, it is almost certain that the standing crops which require 79 TMC of water will not get it. The fulfillment of the drinking water needs of Bengaluru city throughout the summer is also going to be another challenge. The requirement of the state for drinking water up to June 2024 is about 33 TMC.
Tamil Nadu had demanded for the release of 12,500 cusecs of water. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar said that the rains received in August and September were the lowest in 125 years.
(With PTI inputs)
Also Read: Tamil Nadu: Farmer Unions call for 'bandh' against Karnataka over Cauvery water issue
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