Jaya petitions PM for setting up Cauvery Management Board

Seeking justice for farmers of Tamil Nadu facing agrarian "distress forced upon by a neighbouring state," Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa today urged the Centre to immediately constitute the Cauvery Management Board and Cauvery Water Regulation Committee to alleviate their misery.

In a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, she recalled her two communications earlier this year to him on the issue and said the Centre "has not shown the necessary alacrity in constituting the above machinery for the implementation of the Final Order," of the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal though it was published in the Union Gazette on February 19 last.

"Many lakhs of farmers of Tamil Nadu cannot be made to wait any longer for justice which has long been delayed to them as they face season after season of acute agrarian distress forced upon them by a neighbouring State," she said.

"To alleviate the misery of the farmers of Tamil Nadu, the Government of India should immediately take steps to operationalise the tribunal's final order which has been Gazetted after a long delay of six years," Jaya demanded.

The Supreme Court, hearing an application by her government seeking a direction for constitution of the two bodies, had on May 10 recorded the submission of Additional Solicitor General that the follow up action pursuant to the gazette notification was "under active consideration" of the Centre, the Chief Minister said.

The Court had ordered constitution of a Supervisory Committee under the Chairmanship of the Union Water Resources Secretary to ensure the implementation of the final order of the tribunal till the CMB was set up.

This, Jayalalithaa said, "at best, is only an interim arrangement and the Supreme Court in its order had also categorically stated that this was a "pro term arrangement" made for the purpose of ensuring implementation of the tribunal's final order.

She said that formation of the CMB and the CWRC as per the tribunal order would be the only lasting solution to end the "travails and tribulations of the farmers of Tamil Nadu in the Cauvery Delta."

Stating that constitution of the CMB and the CWRC cannot be delayed any further, she exhorted the Prime Minister to order the Ministry of Water Resources to constitute them immediately.