Tamil Nadu may face difficulty in securing its due share of Cauvery water after state officials accepted a decision of the Cauvery Management Authority (CMA) that effectively postpones immediate release from Karnataka’s reservoirs.
The Supreme Court, in February 2018, ordered that 177.25 TMC of water be released annually from Karnataka’s dams to Tamil Nadu. The CMA and the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee were set up to ensure compliance, including fixing monthly release targets and tracking flows at the Biligundlu gauge station near the inter-state border.
At the CMA’s 53rd meeting held in New Delhi on July 23 under chairperson S.K. Haldar, Tamil Nadu representatives—including Water Resources Department Secretary Satyaprabha Sahu and technical committee head Subramanian—sought release of 24.8 TMC pending for June and July.
However, the CMA said rainfall and inflows in Karnataka could be monitored for a week and that a decision could be taken thereafter, considering states’ views along with hydrological and weather conditions. It also indicated that the Water Regulation Committee could be convened to decide the quantum to be supplied.
The development has raised concerns that Tamil Nadu may not receive water as per the legal schedule, with criticism emerging over the absence of any recorded objection from Tamil Nadu officials during the meeting.
