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  India   Karnataka government moves Supreme Court, says will send Tamil Nadu water from January

Karnataka government moves Supreme Court, says will send Tamil Nadu water from January

Published : Sep 27, 2016, 7:16 am IST
Updated : Sep 27, 2016, 7:16 am IST

The Karnataka government on Monday moved the Supreme Court seeking modification of the order directing it to release 6,000 cusecs of water to Tamil Nadu daily from September 21 to 27 in such a way tha

Rapid Action Force personnel stand guard during a protest against the Supreme Court verdict on Cauvery issue, in Bengaluru. -PTI
 Rapid Action Force personnel stand guard during a protest against the Supreme Court verdict on Cauvery issue, in Bengaluru. -PTI

The Karnataka government on Monday moved the Supreme Court seeking modification of the order directing it to release 6,000 cusecs of water to Tamil Nadu daily from September 21 to 27 in such a way that it will release this deficit quantity before the end of the season, namely January 31, 2017.

Ahead of the hearing on Tuesday, Karnataka in its application said that the releases already ordered by this court on September 20 be treated as arrears or shortfall to be cleared by the state of Karnataka subsequently (at the end of the season in January 2017).

It placed on record the resolution passed by the Legislative Assembly that in the water year 2016-2017, there has been an acute situation of distress, but the shortfall in the basin will become known only at the end of the season (31.01.2017). The present storage is only 27.3 tmc ft. and in a year of insufficient rainfall and distress, the state is nonetheless obliged to reserve for supply to inhabitants water at national standards norms (viz. 135 litres per capital (per day) in urban areas and 70 litres per capital (per day) in rural areas). The resolution said, “This House further notes that the combined storages in the four reservoirs viz. Krishna Raja Sagara, Hemavathy, Harangi and Kabini have reached alarmingly low levels; and it is now resolved that in this state of acute distress it is imperative that the Government ensures that no water from the present storages be drawn, save and except for meeting drinking water requirements of the villages and towns in the Cauvery basin and for Bengaluru.”.

Pointing out that TN has adequate water for its 15 lakh acres samba crop, Karnataka said the live storage at Mettur (Tamil Nadu) was 48.31 tmcft. As a result of the probable “normal” northeast Monsoon, the dependence on storage at Mettur would get reduced, the facts on record show that Karnataka has already ensured 52.2 TMC at the border between the period from June 1 to September 25.

With a normal north-east monsoon the inflow into Mettur reservoir (200 km below KRS and Kabini upto the border of Biligundlu without any contributing releases from any Karnataka reservoirs), along with the further catchment below Biligundlu and upto Mettur (about 60 kms) is most likely to generate minimum of 42 tmcft.

Hence, it is reasonably anticipated that the available water at the end of the season (in the water year 2016-2017) would be of the order of 90.32 tmc (ie 48.31 tmcft plus 42 tmcft) which is much more than the highest that was ever drawn from Mettur by Tamil Nadu (for its irrigation) even in the worst of the bad years viz. 2003-04 viz. 50.71 tmc. Hence, Karnataka wanted it to permit to treat the 42,000 cusecs as arrears to be released before January 31, 2017.

Location: India, Delhi, New Delhi