Not sure if Karnataka harps on Mekedatu owing to political factors: TN govt

PTI, Jul 3, 2023, 7:21 PM IST

Chennai: It is not known whether Karnataka government raked up the Mekedatu dam row on and off due to political compulsion but Tamil Nadu would never allow the construction of the reservoir on Cauvery river, Minister for Water Resources Duraimurugan said here on Monday.

Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar taking up with Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat the nod for the project was regrettable, he said. Shivakumar met Shekhawat on June 30 in Delhi.

The Mekedatu dam project went against the Supreme Court judgment and Chief Minister M K Stalin had all along been urging Prime Minister Narendra Modi to not allow the proposal to go through, Duraimurugan said.

The Union Minister for Water Resources had also made it clear that permission would not be given to Karnataka for dam construction without Tamil Nadu’s concurrence, the TN Minister said in a statement.

”Karnataka government has the practice of raking up the Mekedatu issue on and off. It is not known if this is due to political compulsion or not. Whatever may be the case, Tamil Nadu government will never allow Mekedatu dam construction,” the Minister asserted.

While DMK is the ruling party in Tamil Nadu, its ally the Congress is in power in Karnataka. Pointing to Tamil Nadu’s pending cases against the Mekedatu project before the Supreme Court, Duraimurugan said the state would present its strong case against the move during the hearing of the matter and prevent the building of the dam.

Also, in view of Tamil Nadu’s stiff opposition, Mekedatu project proposal was not taken up for discussion in the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) meetings held in February, April and June this year.

”Let us all work unitedly in this issue,” the Minister said a day after AIADMK chief and Leader of Opposition Edappadi K Palaniswami hit out at the DMK regime for not putting up resistance to protect the state’s interests on the dam issue.

Duraimurugan said: ”The Tamil Nadu government is taking all requisite steps at all levels to get Cauvery water from Karnataka to the State as per the Supreme Court judgment.” The shortfall in water supply by Karnataka for the month of June was brought to the notice of Cauvery Water Regulation Committee.

Also, the TN government has written to the Cauvery Water Management Authority to advise Karnataka to address the shortfall and ensure water discharge as per the schedule for July.

Considering the welfare of Cauvery delta farmers, the Mettur dam was opened on June 12 for Kuruvai (short-term) paddy crop cultivation and water was being supplied continuously, the Minister said.