Will Bengaluru's water issues be addressed this poll?

Bengaluru: While water is as always an issue in the city and state, there doesn't seem to be an end to the Cauvery and Mahadayi river disputes despite the political parties making loud promises to resolve them.

"It is well known that both rivers originate in Karnataka but are enjoyed by neighbouring states. It is such an irony that our own people are not able to use their water. Whoever comes to power these elections should  ensure that we get the water first and the remaining is shared among other states," says Mr. Raghavendra Rao, a member of the Rajajinagar Resident Welfare Association. 

Mr Bhushan Hegade, a member of the CV Raman Nagar Resident Welfare Association, also believes that Karnataka has been short changed in the two river disputes. "The government should realise that with cities expanding and their population rising, there is bound to be more demand for water. We cannot rely on the Centre to solve such issues, but look after our own welfare. We should also start adopting rain water harvesting just to be on the safe side," he suggests. But ask the candidates for the coming elections and they give you the stock answers everyone has heard before. While Ms Sowmya Reddy, who has been fielded by the Congress in Jayanagar, admits the Mahadayi and Cauvery  issues are of serious concern to the state especially to its agrarian sector, she believes the Union government must step in solve them "taking into consideration the plight of the farmers and common man."

 "Three states are involved in the Mahadayi issue and if the Prime Minister was interested in solving it he could have called for a meeting and settled it. But instead the issue is just being politicised," she rues. As for the Cauvery, she says the state government has done a lot of hard work and conveyed the  farmers' suffering in the absence of water to the Supreme Court, which ruled in its favour.  

"The government has emphasised that the Cauvery river is the source of drinking water for lakhs of people in Mysuru, Bengaluru and surrounding regions , which are now suffering from a scarcity of water. While the Supreme Court has ruled in our favour, we never know what will happen in the future. So we need to take measures to solve the issue permanently," she admits. The  BJP’s Nandish Reddy says the party is aware about the seriousness of the two river disputes and  senior leaders are working to resolve them. "They are already discussing them and we will work towards settling the disputes after the elections when we form the government," he assures.