CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu govt on Monday moved Supreme Court seeking urgent directions to Karnataka to comply with the Cauvery water management authority’s order requiring a flow of water at the rate of 3,500 cusecs daily at Biligundulu, the inter-state border, for a fortnight. It asked the court to direct Karnataka to ensure that 4.5tmcft reaches Biligundulu by Aug 12.In its petition, Tamil Nadu alleged that Karnataka had “wilfully” failed to implement the binding direction despite having adequate water in its reservoirs — Krishnaraja Sagar and Kabini — following recent heavy rainfall in the catchment areas. The non-compliance had seriously affected farmers in the Cauvery basin who depend on timely supplies for their livelihood. “Chief minister C Joseph Vijay, acting on the advice of senior advocates, directed officials to approach the court for an appropriate order,” said an official release.The authority had endorsed a recommendation of the Cauvery water regulation committee directing Karnataka to release water from KRS and Kabini from Saturday. “Despite the directions, total flows realized at Biligundulu from July 29 to Aug 2 are in the range of 158 cusecs to 530 cusecs,” the state said. It claimed that Karnataka’s four designated reservoirs had a combined gross storage of 77.5tmcft, as on Monday.Tamil Nadu also sought a direction to the authority to require Karnataka to immediately make good what it described as a pro-rata shortfall of 26.9tmcft from June 1 to Aug 12. It asked the authority to monitor Karnataka’s reservoirs every 10 days and enforce the monthly and 10-day releases stipulated under the tribunal award, as modified by Supreme Court in 2018.The state also cited Karnataka’s “past conduct,” alleging that it had repeatedly failed to make the stipulated releases during June and July, the crucial opening months of the cropping season in the Cauvery delta in TN. Referring to data from 2007-08, Tamil Nadu claimed that Karnataka generally allowed water to flow downstream only when flooding resulted in unavoidable reservoir surplus. Of the 12 years examined, Mettur reservoir recorded surplus water in only in five, it said.Even in the years in which there was copious rainfall during the entire season, Karnataka failed to adhere to stipulated releases during June, July and August, the petition said. It claimed the pattern continued even after the authority was constituted in June 2018. “There was never any voluntary compliance of release of stipulated quantities in the crucial months of June and July which are crucial to the sustenance of agricultural economy in the Cauvery basin,” the state said.Tamil Nadu cited Supreme Court’s 2018 judgment declaring interstate river waters a national asset over which no state could claim exclusive ownership.
