New Delhi, August 24: The Supreme Court heard a case on Monday regarding the dispute over the sharing of Cauvery River water between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. The court instructed the Tamil Nadu government to present its grievances to the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA).
During the hearing, the Supreme Court asked Tamil Nadu to raise its concerns about Karnataka allegedly not releasing its designated share of water from the Cauvery River. Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta were reviewing Tamil Nadu’s petition, which sought an immediate directive for Karnataka to release its allocated water share.
The lawyer representing Tamil Nadu argued that the state is entitled to its proportional share of water, but that is not happening. In response, the Supreme Court reminded that it had previously found Tamil Nadu had received more water than its designated share from Karnataka.
The bench stated that Tamil Nadu has received water according to the CWMA’s directives. However, Tamil Nadu’s lawyer contended that the CWMA had not issued instructions for the proportional amount that the state genuinely requires.
Following this, the Supreme Court directed Tamil Nadu to contact the CWMA regarding this issue. The next hearing is scheduled for August 31.
It is important to note that the dispute over Cauvery water has been ongoing for a long time between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. After several rounds of unsuccessful negotiations, the matter reached the courts. The Supreme Court had previously ordered the formation of the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal.
The tribunal delivered its verdict in 2007, allowing Tamil Nadu to draw a specific quantity of water daily. However, disputes continued even after both states filed petitions for a review of the decision.
In 2016, Tamil Nadu approached the Supreme Court again, as Karnataka claimed it had no additional water to share from its reservoirs. Subsequently, the apex court directed the central government to establish the Cauvery Management Board.
In 2023, the court refused to consider Tamil Nadu’s plea to increase its current water share from 5,000 to 7,200 cubic feet per second daily.
Another dispute regarding water sharing between the two states is currently pending in the Supreme Court, related to the Pennaiyar River. The Tamil Nadu government has filed a suit against both the Karnataka government and the central government in this matter.
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