Cauvery water dispute: CWMA holds authority, says TN BJP chief Nagenthran

BJP state president Nainar Nagenthran on Monday said the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) holds the authority to enforce the Supreme Court’s orders on the Cauvery water-sharing dispute. He urged the Tamil Nadu government to act swiftly to secure the state’s due share of water.

The CWMA was constituted by the Centre in 2018 to implement the Supreme Court’s final order in the decades-old Cauvery water dispute. The Supreme Court, in its February 2018 judgment, had allocated 177.25 TMC feet of water to Tamil Nadu, 284.75 TMC feet to Karnataka, 30 TMC feet to Kerala, and 7 TMC feet to Puducherry, while also addressing drinking water requirements.

Speaking to reporters after paying floral tributes to freedom fighter Dheeran Chinnamalai at his memorial in Odanilai on his 221st death anniversary, Mr. Nagenthran said Tamil Nadu had expected the release of Cauvery water by now. He noted that the delay of nearly 50 days had caused hardship to farmers and affected both kuruvai and samba cultivation.

Mr. Nagenthran stated that Karnataka cannot proceed with the proposed Mekedatu reservoir without the CWMA’s approval. Mekedatu is a project planned by Karnataka across the Cauvery in Ramanagara district. Tamil Nadu has consistently opposed it, arguing that it would impede the flow of water and violate the existing agreement. He alleged that the Congress government in Karnataka has failed to comply with the CWMA’s directions. According to him, the dispute tends to resurface whenever the Congress is in power in the neighbouring state.

Describing the Cauvery as the lifeline for irrigation in 11 districts and drinking water supply in 25 districts in Tamil Nadu, he stressed the urgency of ensuring timely release of water for the benefit of farmers and residents.

Referring to Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay’s proposed visit to Karnataka, Mr. Nagenthran said the Chief Minister should lead an all-party delegation of recognised political parties rather than visit the neighbouring state alone. He argued that a united delegation would demonstrate Tamil Nadu’s collective stand on the issue and would send a clearer message to the authorities concerned. He also expressed surprise that the state government had not convened an all-party meeting to discuss the matter.

Maintaining that the responsibility for implementing the CWMA’s directions rests with Karnataka and not the Union government, Mr. Nagenthran claimed that Karnataka has released only about 4.35 TMC feet of water against the 41 TMC feet due for June and July.

He further criticised the state government over what he described as unfulfilled poll promises, including financial assistance to women, unemployment assistance for youth, farm loan waivers, and employment generation. He alleged a deterioration in law and order, saying incidents of sexual assault, murder, and custodial deaths have increased. He also alleged that some functionaries of the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) are facing charges of sexual offences.

On political developments, Mr. Nagenthran said ideological differences and personal relations should not be conflated. He was explaining his recent remarks praising Naam Tamilar Katchi leader Seeman.

The Cauvery water-sharing issue has been a long-standing inter-state dispute, with periodic flare-ups between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka over the release of water. The dispute dates back to colonial-era agreements and has been adjudicated by multiple tribunals and the Supreme Court. Farmer organisations and political parties in Tamil Nadu have been demanding the immediate release of water to save standing crops.