SC agrees to list TN's plea demanding release of Cauvery water from K'taka

New Delhi, August 21

The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to list a plea filed by the Tamil Nadu government demanding the release of its allotment of Cauvery river water from Karnataka for the month of August.

“I will constitute a bench today," said a bench headed by Chief Justice of India, D.Y. Chandrachud, to senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi appearing for the state of Tamil Nadu as it sought urgent listing of the matter.

Rohtagi apprised the bench, also comprising Justices J.B. Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, that Tamil Nadu has moved an application seeking release of water for the month of August in accordance with the directions passed by the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA).

In a related development, the Karnataka government said that it will request reconsideration of the order directing Karnataka to release water from Cauvery river to Tamil Nadu for 15 days.

The Tamil Nadu side had lodged a protest against Karnataka with the CWMA for not releasing sufficient water to the state, thereby risking its Samba cultivation.

With Karnataka announcing the release of only 10 TMC water, farmers in Tamil Nadu are resorting to staging protests on the streets.

Ever since the Congress government assumed charge in Karnataka earlier this year, the state government has been aggressively mooting the construction of a dam at Mekedatu across the Cauvery river which has led to concerns in Tamil Nadu.

Karnataka has announced that it has allocated an amount of Rs 8,000 crore for the construction of the Mekedatu dam, a bone of contention between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.

However, the DMK government in Tamil Nadu has openly stated that it would not allow the Karnataka government to construct a dam across Mekedatu flouting the Cauvery water agreement.