Watter-Battle on Rise: Tamil Nadu CM Writes to Centre to Disallow Karnataka’s Mekedatu Dam

Chennai, June 25: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi k. Palaniswami in a written letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi has urged the Centre to deny permission to Karnataka’s request to construct Mekedatu reservoir across the inter-state river Cauvery. 

 

Karnataka, the upper basin state sought permission for Terms of Reference of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) for the construction of the proposed Mekedatu Balancing Reservoir project on its side. Tamil Nadu CM has said that the move by Karnataka is in utter violation of the Final Order of the Cauvery Tribunal and the Supreme Court judgement given in February last year. 

He has pointed out that Karnataka has not obtained the prior concurrence of Tamil Nadu and other co-basin states. The TN Chief has also asked the Prime Minister to personally intervene in the matter and direct Central Water Commission to reject the proposal. 

 

Mekedatu dam with a capacity of 48 TMC is proposed to be constructed across river Cauvery near Mekedatu in Ramanagara district in Karnataka. Tamil Nadu CM has argued that Cauvery is a deficit basin and the construction of a reservoir or any project by upper riparian States across it will drastically affect the lower riparian states in getting their due share of water. 

He highlighted that the matter is now sub-justice as it is pending before the Supreme Court. All major political parties in Tamil Nadu have gathered together and have strongly opposed the move of Karnataka’s move, claiming that Karnataka is not releasing even a single drop of water to Tamil Nadu, though the Cauvery Water Management Authority has directed the release of 9. 19 TMC feet of water as June month’s share.