SC will ensure that required water will be made available to TN

The government is making efforts to secure Tamil Nadu’s rightful share of Cauvery water from Karnataka and the Supreme Court will ensure that required amount of water will be made available to the State, Chief Minister Jayalalithaa said here on Friday. Replying to a debate on a special call attention motion on the Cauvery issue, the Chief Minister said her government had taken several steps to secure the State’s rights at any cost with a view to protecting the [long-term] samba crop, given the fact that the [short-term] kuruvai crop was adversely affected in the State.

A gut wrenching odour emanating from the greenish yellow coloured “water” flowing down the Popular Mudaliar channel hits the nostrils forcing one to back off the channel banks.

CM commissions Cauvery IV stage II phase project

Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar on Wednesday commissioned Cauvery Water Supply Scheme IV Stage II Phase at Jambusavari Dinne, as a Rajyostava gift to Bangaloreans. The ambitious project of the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) will supply 500 million litres of water per day (mld) to residents of areas newly added to the BBMP.

Taking into consideration Tamil Nadu’s requirement for the next 15 days as well as the shortfall in Karnataka’s water releases between October 16 and 31, the Cauvery Monitoring Committee (CMC) on Wednesday directed that State to release 6.20 tmcft from November 1 to 15, according to Tamil Nadu sources.

The CMC, chaired by Water Resources Ministry Secretary Dhruv Vijai Singh and consisting of the Chief Secretaries of all four riparian States, met to decide the quantum of water to be released by Karnataka from November 1. The CMC had on October 12 directed Karnataka to release 8.85 tmcft from October 16 to 31.

As many as 13,667 households will get piped Cauvery water with the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) all set to commission the Cauvery IV stage II phase project on Wednesday.

BWSSB Minister S Suresh Kumar said here on Tuesday that the project was of much importance than Metro, since it would supply 500 million litres of water per day to the City, the highest compared to any other water projects.

A CRA meeting held on September 19 had failed to produce a solution as both Karnataka and Tamil Nadu had rejected the Prime Minister’s award of 9,000 cusecs of water to save the standing crops in the delta region.

The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed the Cauvery Monitoring Committee (CMC) to examine and make recommendations on all issues likely to be raised by Tamil Nadu and Karnataka over the sharing of water of river Cauvery at the panel’s scheduled meeting tomorrow.

Asks Karnataka counsel to complywith CMC recommendations

The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed the Cauvery Monitoring Committee (CMC), which is meeting here on Wednesday, to examine all questions raised by Tamil Nadu and Karnataka and make appropriate recommendations. A Bench of Justices D.K. Jain and J.S. Khehar also recorded an undertaking from senior counsel Fali Nariman, appearing for Karnataka, that the State would comply with the recommendations which might be made by the CMC in letter and in spirit.

BWSSB confident of reaching its target of 2 lakh connections

Come next week, water woes will be a thing of the past for the residents of the City’s newly-added areas. Water will start flowing in their taps as part of the Cauvery IV stage II phase project. Although only 10,000 consumers have sought connections, BWSSB is confident that they will be able to reach their target of two lakh connections. One of the areas which will receive water is Ramamurthynagar in KR Puram, which faces acute water crisis, especially in summer.

After power and land, the Centre does not want to open up water as another area of dispute with the state governments.

The Union Urban Development Ministry has constituted a working group to suggest ways for the preservation of water bodies in the urban areas. Rapid disappearance of water bodies from the urban landscape has sounded an alarm vis-à-vis water shortfall and has also put a considerable strain on States’ spending to meet the demand for water.

A case in point is Bangalore, which despite having a Lake Development Authority that is considered a model worth replicating, is being forced to spend Rs. 3,000 crore a year on electricity, which is consumed for supplying water from the Cauvery.