Cauvery dispute with TN: Karnataka to put forth its stand in SC seeking to protect state's interests

Bengaluru: Karnataka has moved the Supreme Court with its stand stand regarding the release of Cauvery river water to neighbouring Tamil Nadu, Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar said on Thursday.

He said the state government will place its argument before the court aimed at protecting the interests of the state and its farmers.

"We have had discussions regarding filing our (state) stand before the Supreme Court's new bench. We have filed an appeal regarding the Cauvery water sharing issue aimed at protecting the interests of the state and its farmers," Shivakumar, who is also in-charge of the Water Resources department, told reporters here.

Responding to a question on taking an all party delegation to the Centre regarding Cauvery and other inter-state water issues like Mahadayi, he said a tentative date will be fixed first and the Prime Minister's office and Jal Shakti Minister's office will be contacted, and on getting their appointment, the delegation will be taken.

The Supreme Court on Monday said it will constitute a bench to hear the decades-old dispute between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka over sharing Cauvery river water.

Tamil Nadu approached the Supreme Court earlier this week with a plea to direct Karnataka to release 24,000 cusecs of Cauvery water daily for standing crops.

Karnataka has been maintaining that it will be able to release water to Tamil Nadu taking into account its needs like drinking water and standing crops in the Cauvery basin areas citing scarcity due to deficit monsoon rains.

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday convened an all-party meeting to discuss the inter-state river disputes like Cauvery and Mahadayi.

At the meeting, it was decided to effectively fight a legal battle in the Supreme Court regarding the release of Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu, and cooperation was sought from opposition parties about taking an all-party delegation to the Centre, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, aimed at resolving inter-state water issues and taking up pending projects.

Noting that the Cauvery matter is once again coming up before the SC on August 25, Siddaramaiah had said the "state's legal team has been asked to ensure that their (TN) petition is rejected and all that is possible should be done to protect the interests of the state."