Cauvery water row: Protests intensify, Karnataka bandh on August 13
The CWMA has directed Karnataka to comply with the decision of the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee (CWRC) to release 12,000 cusecs daily for 15 days, with the water to be realised at Biligundlu
After the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) directed Karnataka to release 12,000 cusecs of water daily to Tamil Nadu for 15 days, protests by farmers and Kannada organisations broke out on Tuesday (August 11).
Farmer organisations staged a demonstration in Mandya, while various Kannada organisations gave a call for a Karnataka Bandh on August 13 in protest against the order.
Strong opposition
The CWMA has directed Karnataka to comply with the decision of the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee (CWRC) to release 12,000 cusecs daily for 15 days, with the water to be realised at Biligundlu.
Also read: SC to hear on Aug 13 Tamil Nadu's plea on Cauvery water release
The order has triggered strong opposition among farmers and pro-Kannada groups, who have demanded that the Karnataka government refuse to implement it and take a firm stand against releasing further water to Tamil Nadu.
‘We will observe bandh at any cost’
“We will observe bandh at any cost. I appeal to everyone to support our call for strike,” Vatal Nagaraj, convener of Kannada Chalavali Vatal Paksha told reporters.
The Mandya District Farmers' Welfare Protection Committee has announced a protest near the Visvesvaraya statue in Mandya on Wednesday, urging farmers, Kannada organisations, workers, women and citizens to participate.
“We have to protect the interests of Karnataka farmers. The government should not release water under any circumstances,” a farmer leader said, calling the CWMA direction a threat to the state's water security.
The protests are expected to intensify with Kannada organisations backing the bandh call on August 13 and urging people across the state to participate.
Karnataka explores legal options
Meanwhile, Karnataka Additional Chief Secretary Gaurav Gupta on Tuesday said the state was examining all legal options, including approaching the Supreme Court after the CWMA upheld the recommendation to release 12,000 cusecs of Cauvery water daily to Tamil Nadu for 15 days.
Gupta, who participated in the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) meeting, said Karnataka expected its appeal against the order to be considered by the Supreme Court along with a pending Cauvery-related matter scheduled for hearing on August 13.
“The direction given by the CWMA is to reiterate the decision taken by the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee. The committee had decided to release 12,000 cusecs for a period of 15 days, to be realised at Biligundlu,” Gupta told reporters in New Delhi.
(With agency inputs)