The Hindu : Cauvery row: T.N. to move SC today

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Sep 10, 2002

National

National

Cauvery row: T.N. to move SC today

By J. Venkatesan

NEW DELHI Sept. 9. The Tamil Nadu Government is moving the Supreme Court tomorrow challenging the decision of the Cauvery River Authority, headed by the Prime Minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee, directing Karnataka to release 9,000 cusecs of water a day with immediate effect to Mettur reservoir.

Describing Mr. Vajpayee's decision at the CRA meeting on September 8 as not `unanimous', the petition will seek a direction from the court that Karnataka should continue to ensure that it released at least 1.25 tmc ft. (thousand million cubic feet) of water per day to provide immediate succour to the delta farmers.

Tamil Nadu is to point out that to raise the `samba' crop in about 12 lakh acres, 1.5 tmc ft. of water a day would be required till October end and only if the present order of the Supreme Court of 1.25 tmc ft. was maintained could the crop be sustained to some extent.

The petition will draw attention to the fact that even as per the `distress formula' worked out by the Central Water Commission, the State was entitled to 76 tmc ft. till October end.

And any quantity less than 1.25 tmc ft. a day would be detrimental to the farmers' interest and it would lead to a calamity situation in the delta area resulting in unprecedented losses. It says that after Mr. Vajpayee announced the CRA's decision to release 9,000 cusecs of water a day, the Tamil Nadu Finance Minister, C. Ponnaiyan, voiced his protest and urged the officials to record the protest in the minutes of the meeting.

At 8 a.m. on Monday, the realisation at Mettur reservoir was only 4,130 cusecs though in anticipation of the 1.25 tmc ft. water from Karnataka, the State had released over 14,000 cusecs daily.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

National