Karnataka's push for Mekedatu gives Tamil Nadu the jitters

The past week saw Karnataka hit the gas on the Mekedatu balancing reservoir project across the river Cauvery, even as its neighbor Tamil Nadu is looking to block it.

The Mekedatu row is an extension of a protracted battle both states have waged over sharing the Cauvery water.

Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa held talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Environment, Forest & Climate Change Minister Prakash Javadekar seeking clearance for the Mekedatu project.

Before Yediyurappa, Water Resources Minister Ramesh Jarkiholi met Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat to push for the project.

Karnataka is awaiting environmental clearance after having submitted a detailed project report to the Centre, last year. The project aims to store and provide 4.75 tmcft of drinking water to Bengaluru and surrounding areas, apart from generating 400 MW of hydroelectricity at an estimated cost of Rs 9,000 crore.

"We're clear the project is against our interests," Tamil Nadu Public Works Department secretary K Manivasan said. "The Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal (CWDT) and the Supreme Court have quantified the level of water to be released to Tamil Nadu based on the existing reservoirs in Karnataka. Therefore, there is no need for another reservoir across Cauvery."

Tamil Nadu has also moved the Supreme Court on this, with Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami writing to Prime Minister Narendra Modi whenever Karnataka pushes Mekedatu.

Karnataka has maintained that Tamil Nadu's concerns were misplaced. "Tamil Nadu is opposing it on the grounds that the reservoir will be an obstruction to the natural flow of the river. But isn't that the eventuality with the construction of any dam? As for their fears that their share of water will come down, we have the CWDT order in place, as per which we have to release 177.25 tmcft water annually to Tamil Nadu. There is no scope for violating this," a senior Karnataka Water Resources department official explained.

"Also, the balancing reservoir is also a way to optimise transmission loss. The water let out to Tamil Nadu travels about 200 km before reaching the state, resulting in huge transmission loss. With the Mekedatu reservoir, Tamil Nadu's share of water will reach Mettur in hardly 60-70 km. This is beneficial for both states," the official added.

But Tamil Nadu farmers fear the Mekedatu project will have cascading effects in the Cauvery delta region (Thanjavur, Thiruvarur, Nagapattinam and parts of Pudukkottai districts that depend on Cauvery water for irrigation). "Karnataka released about 45-50 tmcft excess water this year after the onset of monsoon. If a reservoir comes up in Mekedatu, they will release water only if that also fills up," Tamil Nadu Federation of All Farmers’ Associations P R Pandian said.

The BJP government's push for the project found support from Karnataka Congress president D K Shivakumar. "The DPR was submitted during my tenure as the water resources minister. We hope the project will be approved soon," he said.

Environmental concerns

The Mekedatu project will come at a huge environmental cost.

The project requires a total land of 5252.4 hectares out of which 2925.5 hectares belong to the Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary (CWS). This apart, 1869.5 hectares of forest land and 201 hectares revenue land will be submerged. The villages of Sangama, Kongedoddi, Madavala, Muthathi, and Bommasandra will get submerged.

The CWS is the only habitat in Karnataka for near-threatened grizzled giant squirrel, the endangered, endemic fish species Deccan Mahseer, Indian Pangolin among other rare flora and fauna.

"We need to have developed but not at the cost of loss of fragile ecosystems, and human suffering. With the current engineering capabilities, there are surely alternatives available that need to be seriously explored," conservationist Sanjay Gubbi said.