JOIN USThe protests that were being held opposing the release of water to Tamil Nadu continued in the district on Sunday also.
While JD(S) activists held protests in the city under the leadership of MLA H D Revanna, members of Karnataka Rakshana Vedike held a stir near the Hemavathy dam at Gorur.
JD(S) supporters took out a rally on the main roads on Sunday morning.
No rainfall
The agitators said the district has not received sufficient rainfall over the past four years, resulting in severe drought.
Hemavathy dam too had not reached its maximum capacity this year. While crops in the district are withering, 6,000 cusecs of water is being released to Tamil Nadu, they lamented.
The protestors also took out a mock funeral procession of Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalitha and later reached deputy commissioner’s office to submit a memorandum.
Clarification
As the officials clarified that they have stopped releasing water to Tamil Nadu from the dam, the party, which had decided to hold a night vigil at the dam cancelled the programme, Revanna said.
MLA H S Prakash, MLC Patel Shivaram, JD(S) district unit president H K Javaregowda, ZP president B R Sathyanarayana, CMC president C R Shankar and others participated.
‘Water released as per directives of SC’
In view of vigorous opposition from farmers across the district, water released from Hemavathy and Yagachi reservoirs has been stopped from Saturday midnight.
About 6,600 cusecs of water was released every day from the Hemavathy dam to KRS over the past few days. Along with this, 3,000 cusecs of water was released from Yagachi reservoir at wee hours of Saturday, which received stiff opposition from the farmers, organisations and political parties.
Speaking at a press meet here at the deputy commissioner’s office on Saturday, Hemavathy dam engineer Venkatesh said, water was released as per the directive of the court’s order. Accordingly, water was to be released up to Monday, but he assured not more than 1.25 tmc ft water will be released. However, as per the orders of the higher authorities, releasing of water has been stopped from Sunday, he said.