2,000 cusecs, keep giving it to Tamil Nadu: Supreme Court to Karnataka
Common sense must prevail in both states, says Supreme Court.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed Karnataka to release 2,000 cusecs of water every day to Tamil Nadu till further orders and asked both the states to maintain peace and harmony.
A three-judge Bench comprising Justices Dipak Misra, Amitav Roy and A.M. Kanwilkar passed the order taking note of the report of the technical committee giving its assessment on the ground realities in the Cauvery river basin that farmers are facing a distress situation due to 50 per cent deficiency in rainfall.
The report said that farmers are in dire need of water in both the states. The Bench said that since the technical committee had given its conclusions without making any recommendations on the quantum of water to be released, it was directing that the earlier arrangement made on October 4 till today should continue until further orders.
The Bench told Karnataka’s Advocate General M.R. Naik that the executive should comply with the orders. The Bench said that since the court was seized of the matter, common sense must prevail. It asked both the states to ensure that public properties are protected and citizens are not allowed to take law into their hands.
Senior counsel Shekar Naphade for Tamil Nadu said that even as per the technical committee’s report, the state was entitled to get 63 tmcft of water in October and it has so far received only 52 tmcft. The Bench took note of the submission and passed the order directing Karnataka to release 2,000 cusecs daily at least till North-East Monsoon sets in Tamil Nadu.
The Bench also heard preliminary submissions from the Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi on behalf of the Centre on the question of maintainability of the appeals filed by Karnataka, TN and Kerala, challenging the final award of the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal in February 2007.
The AG argued that there is an embargo on the apex court under Article 262 of the Constitution, read with Section 11 of the Inter-State River Disputes Act, 1956 not to entertain any appeal against the final award of the Tribunal.