Puducherry government asks for its share of Cauvery water for rice cultivation in Karaikal
The Hindu
Flagging the deficit in receiving its due share of Cauvery water for the Karaikal region for June and July, the Puducherry government has urged the Cauvery Water Management Authority to ensure that the Union Territory is given its fair quantum of water, as stipulated by the order of the Supreme Court.
Flagging the deficit in receiving its due share of Cauvery water for the Karaikal region for June and July, the Puducherry government has urged the Cauvery Water Management Authority to ensure that the Union Territory is given its fair quantum of water, as stipulated by the order of the Supreme Court.
According to an official release from the office of the Public Works Department (PWD) Minister K. Lakshminarayanan, officials who participated in the recently-held 22nd meeting of the Authority in Delhi, highlighted the fact that the cumulative release of Cauvery water for June and July was only 0.18 tmcft (thousand million cubic feet) against the allotment of 0.25 tmcft, indicating a deficit of 0.06 Tmcft, or a 27.6% shortfall.
Clocking the flow of Cauvery water during this month (as of August 7, 2023) at 0.08 Tmcft, and the cumulative flow till that date at 0.26 Tmcft, the government represented that this was against the apportioned Cauvery water requirement for August, which is 1.05 Tmcft.
The situation of water realisation for Karaikal region between August 7 to 11 was zero, the government stated.
The UT urged the Authority to direct the basin States to release adequate water to meet the needs of Karaikal, highlighting the fact that the region was the main source of rice cultivation in the U.T. and farmers who were dependent on Cauvery water would be deprived for kuruvai crop season.
On sharing of Cauvery waters during a distress year, it was stated that Puducherry had always been insisting that a formula for pro-rata sharing be evolved by the Authority for a distress year, with due share to the Union Territory.