Karnataka decides to use Cauvery water for drinking only

The joint Assembly of both Houses in Karnataka met today to take a final unanimous decision on the water row with Tamil Nadu. So far, a motion has been passed to use Cauvery basin water in Karnataka only for drinking purposes only.

The important points agreed upon and passed in the Assembly are:

• The water from four reservoirs –KRS, Kabini, Harangi and Hemavathi to be used for drinking purposes only.
• The decision is aimed at providing water to those residing in Bengaluru and the Cauvery basin. 
• The water held in the reservoirs cannot be used for any other purpose, like agriculture.

Water Resources Minister MB Patil proposed the motion and the House approved it after a small discussion.

The Karnataka government decided to defer release of 6,000 cusecs of Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu till September 23 when a special session of the state legislature would take a decision on the Supreme Court direction.
    

The Cauvery Supervisory Committee had on September 19 asked Karnataka to release 3,000 cusecs per day from September 21 to 30, but the apex court had yesterday doubled the quantum to 6,000 cusecs from September 21 to 27 after Tamil Nadu pressed for water to save its samba paddy crop.
    

On September 5, the court had ordered the release of 15,000 cusecs of water for the next ten days to address the plight of the farmers in Tamil Nadu.
    

The quantum was reduced on September 12 to 12,000 cusecs to be released until September 20.
    

Karnataka had complied with these directions thought it had been maintaining that the storage in its reservoirs was inadequate to meet the drinking water needs of its people. Siddaramaiah had termed the Supreme Court's fresh order on the release of Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu as "unimplementable" and called for the all-party meeting. 
 

• Cauvery Issue
• Karnataka