The Cauvery Water Regulation Authority has directed Karnataka to ensure a daily release of 3,000 cusecs of Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu for the next 15 days, adding to the pressure on the river basin’s already disputed water management system.
The direction will apply from 8am on Friday and require Karnataka to release a total of 3.88 thousand million cubic feet (TMC ft) to Tamil Nadu, according to a report by Prajavani. The decision was taken at a meeting chaired by authority chairman S.K. Haldar on Thursday, which upheld the recommendation of the Cauvery Water Management Committee.
Tamil Nadu had sought a substantially higher release. It demanded that Karnataka make good an earlier balance of 15.02 TMC ft and ensure a flow of 20.01 TMC ft, or approximately 15,050 cusecs per day, at Biligundulu until October 23. The authority did not accept that demand.
Tamil Nadu told the meeting that the Mettur reservoir held 32.01 TMC ft, while its inflow was about 952 cusecs. It said irrigation water releases had been delayed by 81 days and that the Samba paddy crop was facing distress. Tamil Nadu also claimed that Karnataka was required to have released 127.70 TMC ft so far, but had released only 46.04 TMC ft.
The state further alleged that Karnataka had not complied with the authority’s previous directions. Against an earlier requirement of 4.83 TMC ft, it said Karnataka had released 3.898 TMC ft.
Karnataka’s officials argued that the state was facing a sharp reduction in inflows. The state’s four reservoirs had received 117.14 TMC ft between June and the meeting, they said, representing a 54% shortfall compared with previous years. With the southwest monsoon having ended, the possibility of significant replenishment was described as very low.
The dispute reflects the administrative difficulty of applying water-sharing directions during a period when reservoir levels, inflows, crop requirements and seasonal forecasts are moving in different directions. The authority’s order sets a near-term release obligation, while the competing claims submitted by Karnataka and Tamil Nadu show how the same basin is being assessed through different measures of available water and agricultural need.
Tamil Nadu’s officials said the state’s three reservoirs held 37.99 TMC ft. They also argued that inflows from the intermediate basin, contributions from downstream areas and groundwater availability could take the overall water resource to 244.99 TMC ft. They added that the northeast monsoon was expected to remain normal, which could benefit Tamil Nadu, and maintained that the state had sufficient storage for Samba cultivation.
The immediate requirement before Karnataka is therefore to implement the authority’s direction from Friday morning and maintain the prescribed daily release for 15 days. The order does not grant Tamil Nadu’s demand for a higher flow or settle the competing claims over earlier shortfalls and seasonal distress.
