Karnataka invites CWMA to visit its reservoirs in Cauvery basin

Karnataka has invited the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) to visit the reservoirs across the Cauvery in the State to understand the ground reality and know the water distress that is being faced.

Karnataka has invited the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) to visit the reservoirs across the Cauvery in the State to understand the ground reality and know the water distress that is being faced.

“We have invited the authority to visit the reservoirs to assess the water distress in the State. We hope the authority will honour our request and protect the interests of the State and its farmers,” Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar, who holds Water Resources portfolio, told reporters in Delhi on Thursday.

“It is a challenge to release 5,000 cusecs of water daily given the rain deficiency and reduced inflow into reservoirs,” said Mr. Shivakumar, who met the legal team to discuss the State’s preparation for the Supreme Court hearing scheduled for Friday. He reiterated that the Mekedatu balancing reservoir was the only solution to all these problems, and the reservoir would protect the interests of Tamil Nadu as well.

Meanwhile, in its reply to the Supreme Court, the CWMA noted that the cumulative inflows received at the four reservoirs (Kabini, Harangi, Hemavati, and Krishnaraja Sagar) between June 1 and August 27 was 97.14 tmcft, as compared to the average cumulative inflows in the last 30 years of 199.153 tmcft, which meant a shortfall of 51.22 %.

It also noted that the distress condition in the Cauvery basin had increased in the past 15 days, and that the per cent of departure in the rainfall had more deficit in the upper catchment of the Cauvery basin.

Further, it said that live storage in the Karnataka reservoirs had depleted owing to deficient rains and the State had to conserve water for meeting the drinking water needs of the basin, including Bengaluru. The current live storage is 62.85 tmcft, which is 60.12 % against the total live storage of 104.55 tmcft.

The authority stated that the cumulative observed flow at Biligundlu between June 1 and August 28 was 30.252 tmcft as against the stipulated flow of 80.45 tmcft to be realised in a normal year as per the final award of CWDT, as modified by Supreme Court, which was a shortfall by 50.20 tmcft.