JOIN USWith Karnataka refusing to release 10 tmc feet of water immediately to Tamil Nadu owing to a shortage in its reservoirs, the Supervisory Committee on the Cauvery on Saturday decided to meet again on June 12 to take a decision on the issue.
The panel headed by Union Water Resources Secretary S K Sarkar, which held its first meeting here, said as the monsoon was yet to gather momentum, it was not possible to decide on the quantum of water to be released. Hoping for a good monsoon this year, the panel decided to meet again on June 12.
While Tamil Nadu demanded the release of 10 tmc feet of water by Karnataka in June, Karnataka expressed its inability to comply owing to the shortage in its reservoirs.
The Central Water Commission, in its presentation before the meeting, said live storage in all four reservoirs in the Cauvery basin in Karnataka on Friday stood at 3.77 tmc feet, as against 3.73 tmc feet in Mettur (Tamil Nadu).
Between June 1 and 20, Tamil Nadu requires 1.2 tmc feet of water for irrigation, mainly for nursery cultivation of the Kuruvai paddy crop. During the same period, Karnataka needs 0.9 tmc feet for irrigation. The panel observed that both states had sufficient water to meet immediate irrigation requirements.
Though the Cauvery Water Dispute Tribunal, in its final award, had categorically said all basin states have to use the allotted water for both irrigation and drinking purposes, the meeting emphasised that priority should be given to drinking water.
To ensure proper collection of data on water storage in reservoirs, besides inflow and outflow, the panel also decided that Karnataka will observe the situation at Kabini, Haringi, Hemavathy and K R Sagar, while Tamil Nadu will observe the situation at the Mettur and Amravathi reservoirs. Kerala and Tamil Nadu will jointly observe the Chavadiyoor site.