Karnataka is considering moving the Supreme Court against an order directing it to release 6,000 cusecs of Cauvery water daily to Tamil Nadu, Water Resources Minister N. Cheluvarayaswamy said in Bengaluru on Tuesday. The minister said a decision would be taken after discussions with Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday.
The order was issued by the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee. Cheluvarayaswamy said Karnataka’s officials had presented the state’s rainfall and river-flow conditions before the committee, but argued that the direction did not reflect the current water situation in the Cauvery basin.
“Given the distress situation, releasing even 6,000 cusecs is impossible for us,” the minister said, according to the report. He added that Tamil Nadu had sought the release of 17,000 cusecs of water, while inflows into the Cauvery basin had declined significantly over the previous week.
The minister described the committee’s order as unreasonable and said Karnataka would decide on approaching the Supreme Court after consultations with the chief minister. His comments did not indicate that a petition had already been filed or that the Supreme Court had issued any direction on the matter.
Cheluvarayaswamy also outlined the state’s water-management position. He said about half of the water currently held in Karnataka’s reservoirs had been reserved for drinking-water needs. He added that water was being supplied for crops from the Bhadra and Upper Krishna projects according to requirements.
The minister said reservoir releases were also being managed in a controlled manner to prevent drinking-water problems in the Chitradurga region. His statements place the proposed legal challenge within a broader dispute over how available reservoir storage, river inflows, drinking-water reserves and agricultural demand should be balanced during a period of reduced inflow.
Karnataka’s next step is expected to be decided after the proposed meeting with the chief minister on Wednesday. Any petition, filing or further direction from the Supreme Court would establish the subsequent legal and operational position on the 6,000-cusec release order.
