The Karnataka government has asked the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) to reduce the water release to Tamil Nadu at Biligundlu from 4,000 cusecs a day to 2,000 cusecs, citing severe drought conditions and falling storage in the state’s reservoirs.
The request was made after the CWMA’s eighth meeting directed Karnataka to release 4,000 cusecs daily to Tamil Nadu for the next 15 days. Water Resources Minister N. Cheluvarayaswamy said the state had written to the authority seeking a review of that direction.
According to the submission, inflows into the Krishna Raja Sagar, Hemavathi, Harangi and Kabini reservoirs have declined sharply after the southwest monsoon ended completely in Karnataka. The four reservoirs together have only 49 TMC of water available for use, the minister said.
Karnataka told the authority that this storage would have to be managed carefully to meet the state’s drinking water needs, environmental requirements and evaporation losses until June 2027. The submission also said the Cauvery basin was facing severe drought, with around 47 taluks already declared drought-affected.
The state government said it had complied strictly with all directions issued by the water management authority during the current water year. Between June 1 and September 30, a total of 44.21 TMC of water was recorded at Biligundlu, according to the minister’s statement cited by Prajavani.
Karnataka’s appeal is based on the state’s assessment that it is not in a position to release substantial quantities from the KRS and Kabini reservoirs. The government also referred to forecasts of normal or above-normal northeast monsoon conditions in Tamil Nadu, which it said could improve inflows in the neighbouring state.
The interstate Cauvery system is monitored through mandated releases at Biligundlu, the measurement point used to record water flowing from Karnataka into Tamil Nadu. Decisions on such releases affect reservoir management in Karnataka as well as water availability for agriculture and other uses in Tamil Nadu.
The state has therefore asked the CWMA to reconsider its earlier order and reduce the required release at Biligundlu to 2,000 cusecs a day. The supplied report does not include the authority’s response to Karnataka’s latest request or indicate when the appeal will be taken up for a decision.
