Cauvery Aarti is fine, but Bengaluru needs action beyond symbolism to quench its thirst Premium

In the presence of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar, the ceremony featured various cultural and religious components, traditional puja rituals, elaborate lighting displays, and a live orchestra on a floating stage. The Cauvery waters from Bhagamandala, a pilgrim centre, was distributed as prasada to attendees. Mr. Shivakumar himself went to Bhagamandala to offer prayers before the event at Sankey Tank. All across India, including Karnataka, offering prayers to water bodies is a common ritual.

A day before World Water Day, that is observed on March 22, the Karnataka government held Cauvery Aarti at Sankey Tank in Bengaluru, Malleswaram, drawing parallels to the famed Ganga Aarti in Varanasi. In fact, priests from the pilgrim city in Uttar Pradesh were brought for this special event. The authorities said that this first-of-its kind event near a city’ tank was aimed at deepening the community’s connection to the river and highlight the importance of water conservation.

This theme of water conservation does indeed resonate in an ever-growing city that is desperately trying to meet its water needs with limited resources.

In the presence of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar, the ceremony featured various cultural and religious components, traditional puja rituals, elaborate lighting displays, and a live orchestra on a floating stage. The Cauvery waters from Bhagamandala, a pilgrim centre, were distributed as prasada to attendees. Mr. Shivakumar himself went to Bhagamandala to offer prayers before the event at Sankey Tank. All across India, including Karnataka, offering prayers to water bodies is a common ritual.

The event at the Sankey Tank drew significant attention, with over 10,000 turning up to watch the spectacle.

According to the State government and Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) officials, Sankey Tank was chosen as the venue due to its historical and religious significance, believed to be the birthplace of Vrishabhavathi, a tributary of the Cauvery. However, the event faced legal scrutiny due to environmental concerns. A petition was filed seeking to halt the aarti, but the Karnataka High Court declined to intervene, directing the state government and civic authorities to adhere strictly to legal provisions governing activities in water bodies. 

The Cauvery Aarti served as a platform to recognise the river’s vital role in Bengaluru’s water supply, providing approximately 70% of the city’s daily water needs. The government’s contentious and ambitious Mekedatu project is aimed at harnessing more water from Cauvery. It is a multipurpose project involving the construction of a balancing reservoir over the river, to provide drinking water to Bengaluru and neighbouring areas, totalling 4.75 thousand million cubic feet (tmc ft) of water, thereby lessening dependence on groundwater. But the project is hanging fire with riparian state Tamil Nadu raising objections.

With water scarcity becoming only more acute every summer and the ability of Cauvery to provide water being finite even with more projects in the anvil, conservation experts and Bengalurians say that the government should do something beyond symbolism to promote water conservation.