SC orders Karnataka to comply with Cauvery water release directive

The Supreme Court on Monday directed Karnataka to comply with the Cauvery Water Management Authority's (CWMA) water release orders and sought a status report. The bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta posted the matter to August 24 after Karnataka's counsel claimed the state had been releasing over 12,000 cusecs of water despite a severe distress year. Tamil Nadu's counsel countered that Karnataka had hardly released water, leaving a backlog of over 20 tmcft and preventing farmers from getting supplies.

Karnataka opposed Tamil Nadu's plea, arguing that the CWMA had wrongly approved the 12,000 cusecs release recommendation for a distress year caused by the El-Nino effect. Tamil Nadu had approached the court alleging wilful non-compliance even with an earlier 3,500 cusecs daily release order. Meanwhile, at the Southern Zonal Council meeting, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay, with Karnataka Chief Minister D K Shivakumar beside him, stressed that the legitimate rights of lower riparian states must be protected and that Supreme Court verdicts and CWMA decisions on Cauvery water sharing must be implemented on time.