SC directs supervisory committee to decide Tamil Nadu’s Plea in 10 days

SC directs supervisory committee to decide

Tamil Nadu’s Plea in 10 days

Karnataka was asked to release 15,000 cusecs
of Kavery water per day for 10 days

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday, 05^th September 2016,  directed Karnataka to release 15,000 cusecs of Cauvery water per day to Tamil Nadu for the next 10 days to ameliorate the plight of the farmers.

Noting that the samba crops in Tamil Nadu would be adversely affected, a bench comprising justices Dipak Misra and U.U. Lalit directed Karnataka to ensure water supply to Tamil Nadu.

The apex court also directed Tamil Nadu to approach the supervisory committee within three days for the release of Cauvery water as per the final order of the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal (CWDT).

The Supreme Court also asked the supervisory committee to decide on Tamil Nadu’s plea in ten days from this day.

“We think it’s appropriate to direct Karnataka to release 15,000 cusecs of water per day for ten days,” the bench said, while also directing Tamil Nadu to release water to Puducherry appropriately as per its interim arrangement.

The court posted the matter for further hearing on September 16.  On September 2, the Supreme Court had made an emotional appeal to Karnataka saying ‘live and let live’, after Tamil Nadu brought to the notice of the court that  Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah had said that not a drop of water would be released.

In a recent plea, Tamil Nadu had sought a direction to Karnataka to release 50.52 thousand million cubic feet (tmcft) of Cauvery water to save 40,000 acres of samba crops this season.

In reply, Karnataka had said that it had a deficit of about 80 tmcft in its four reservoirs.  Senior lawyer, F.S. Nariman, who appeared for Karanataka, said that there were “rain deficit months” in the recent past and it was difficult to release water to Tamil Nadu.