Tamil Nadu has filed a fresh application in the Supreme Court alleging that inadequate water releases from Karnataka have affected 10 lakh acres of farmland in the state and asking the court to hear the matter urgently.
The application was filed on behalf of the Tamil Nadu government by advocate Karunagaran before a bench headed by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant. The court recorded the submission and indicated that it would consider whether the case could be listed for an expedited hearing, according to a report by Dinamalar.
Tamil Nadu’s application alleges that Karnataka has not released the water due to the state under the Cauvery sharing arrangements for the current year. It also claims that Karnataka has not complied fully with a direction issued by the Cauvery Water Management Authority to release water at a rate of 3,000 cusecs for 15 days.
The authority’s direction followed a meeting held last week, according to the report. Tamil Nadu has alleged that Karnataka did not release even the prescribed flow from October 23, despite the order. The application argues that the failure to implement the water-sharing directions has placed the livelihoods of farmers at risk.
The dispute has been taken repeatedly to the Supreme Court, the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee and the Cauvery Water Management Authority. Tamil Nadu has sought directions from each of these institutions for the release of water, while Karnataka has delayed or not fully implemented some of the directions, the state’s latest application alleges.
The reported impact covers 10 lakh acres of agricultural land in Tamil Nadu. The filing links the water shortage directly to farm losses and livelihood insecurity, although the report does not provide a district-wise breakdown of the affected acreage, crop types or an independent assessment of the damage.
The Cauvery system is managed through a combination of judicial orders, inter-state water-sharing arrangements and decisions by the regulatory and management bodies established to oversee releases. The latest application places renewed attention on the gap between directions issued by these institutions and their implementation on the ground.
The Supreme Court has not, according to the supplied report, issued a fresh direction on water release or fixed a hearing date. The immediate next step is the court’s consideration of Tamil Nadu’s request for an expedited listing of the application.
